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SCIENCE  AND  LETTERS  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES, 

AND  AT  THE  PERIOD  OF  THE  RENAISSANCE. 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2013 


http://archive.org/details/sciliteraturOOjaco 


THE  KING  OF  NAVARRE,  HENRI  D'ALBRET,  MEETING  MARGUERITE 
IN  THE  GARDENS  OF  ALENCON. 

Miniature  from  tlie  Initiatoire  instructive  en  la  religion  chrestienne,  M.S.  executed  in  the  xvi"'  century 
for  Marguerite  of  Navarre,  and  generally  attributed  to  Geoflroy  Tory;  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


SCIENCE    AND     LITERATURE 


THE   MIDDLE  AGES, 


AND  AT  THE  PERIOD  OF 


THE    RENAISSANCE, 


By    PAUL    LACROIX 

(Bibliophile  Jacob), 

CURATOR   OF  THE   IMPERIAL   LIBRARY   OF  THE  ARSENAL,   PARIS. 


Ellustvntcii  toitit 
THIRTEEN   CHROMOLITHOGRAPHIC   PRINTS   BY  F.   KELLERHOVEN 

AND   UPWARDS  OF 

FOUR  HUNDRED  ENGRAVINGS  ON  WOOD. 


LONDON : 
BICKERS  AND  SON,   i,  LEICESTER  SQUARE. 

1S7S. 


PEEFACE. 


■^ITH  this  new  and  last  volume,  the  subject  of  whicli 
is   not  less  replete  with,  interest   than  that  of   the 
■^    three    preceding  volumes,  we  bring  to  a  close  our 
'^      work  upon  the  Middle  Ages  and  the  Renaissance. 

In  the  beginning  of  the  Middle  Ages,  at  the 
commencement  of  the  fifth  century,  the  Barbarians 
made  an  inroad  upon  the  old  world  ;  their  renewed  inva- 
sions crushed  out,  ia  the  course  of  a  few  years,  the  Greek 
and  Roman  civilisation ;  and  everywhere  darkness  succeeded  to 
light.  The  religion  of  Jesus  Christ  was  alone  capable  of  resisting 
this  barbarian  invasion,  and  science  and  literature,  together  with  the 
arts,  disappeared  from  the  face  of  the  earth,  takiag  refuge  in  the 
churches  and  the  monasteries.  It  was  there  that  they  were  preserved 
as  a  sacred  deposit,  and  it  was  thence  that  they  emerged  when  Christianity 
had  renovated  pagan  society.  But  centuries  and  centuries  elapsed  before  the 
sum  of  human  knowledge  was  equal  to  what  it  had  been  at  the  fall  of  the 
Roman  empire.  A  new  society,  moreover,  was  needed  for  the  new  efforts  of 
human  intelligence  as  it  resumed  its  rights.  Schools  and  universities  were 
founded  under  the  auspices  of  the  clergj^  and  of  the  religious  corporations,  and 
thus  science  and  Kterature  were  enabled  to  emerge  from  their  tomb.  Europe, 
amidst  the  tumultuous  conflicts  of  the  policy  which  made  and  unmade 
kingdoms,  witnessed    a   general    revival   of   scholastic  zeal ;    poets,  orators. 


PREFACE. 


noveKsts,  and  writers  increased  in  numbers  and  grew  in  favour ;  savants, 
philosopliers,  chemists  and  alchemists,  mathematicians  and  astronomers, 
travellers  and  naturalists,  were  awakened,  so  to  speak,  by  the  life-giving- 
breath  of  the  Middle  Ages;  and  great  scientific  discoveries  and  admirable 
works  on  every  imaginable  subject  showed  that  the  genius  of  modern  society 
was  not  a  whit  inferior  to  that  of  antiquity.  Printing  was  invented,  and 
with  that  brilliant  discovery,  the  Middle  Ages,  which  had  accomplished  their 
work  of  social  renovation,  made  way  for  the  Renaissance,  which  scattered 
abroad  in  profusion  the  proliiic  and  brilliant  creations  of  Art,  Science,  and 
Literature. 

Such  is  the  grand  and  imposing  picture  which  we  have  attempted  to  bring 
before  our  readers  in  a  concise  form,  limiting  ourselves  to  narrative  and 
description,  and  not  plunging  into  the  imaginary  regions  of  theory  and 
historical  discussion.  The  impartial  and  truth-loving  historian  confines 
himself  to  narrative,  and  though  his  personal  opinions  must,  as  a  matter  of 
course,  show  themselves  in  his  narrative  of  facts,  whether  given  in  detail  or 
abridged,  he  should  not  seek  to  force  them  upon  his  readers  by  systematic 
violence  and  bj^  efforts  of  philosophical  demonstration.  The  history  of  the 
Middle  Ages  has,  more  than  any  other  period,  given  rise  to  these  excesses  of 
conflicting  opinions.  According  to  some,  everything  relating  to  the  Middle 
Ages  is  bad  and  blameworthy ;  according  to  others,  everything  is  admirable 
and  good.  We  are  not  concerned  to  pronounce  between  these  two  extreme 
opmions ;  we  have  written  our  narrative  in  all  sincerity  and  truth,  and  our 
readers  can  judge  for  themselves.  Moreover,  the  greater  part  of  our  work 
was  done  for  us.  With  respect  to  this  volume,  as  to  the  preceding  ones,  we 
have  simply  analyzed  several  chapters  of  our  first  book,  "  The  Middle  Ages 
and  the  Renaissance,"  completing,  and  in  some  cases  amending,  the  collective 
work  of  our  former  coUaborateurs,  and  adding  at  the  same  time  to  this  work, 
which  is  now  deservedly  appreciated,  the  chapters  which  were  wanting,  and 
the  absence  of  which  showed  that  it  was  imperfect. 

It  is  none  the  less  a  high  honour  for  us  to  have  had  the  planning  of  this 
work,  which  is  unfortunately  left  incomplete,  and  to  have  superintended  the 
execution  of  a  literary  enterprise  which  obtained  the  most  honourable  encou- 
ragement, and  almost  mianimous  praise.  Our  dear  friend  Ferdinand  Sere, 
who  died  while  engaged  iipon  it,  had  struck  the  right  vein  with  regard  to  the 
illustration  of  this  magnificent  book,  in  which  were  to  be  reproduced  so  many 


PREFACE.  vii 


unpublished  records  of  the  art  of  drawing.  But  we  had  fallen  upon  evil 
times,  and  after  expending  much  corn-age  and  perseverance,  we  had  to  stop 
before  we  had  completed  our  programme,  and  terminate  a  work  upon  which 
we  had  spent  so  many  years  of  labour.  Thus  "  The  Middle  Ages  and  the 
Renaissance  "  had  only  five  volumes  instead  of  six. 

I  have  written  an  absolutely  new  work,  availing  myself,  however,  of  the 
original  work,  which  remains  as  it  was  before.  The  four  volumes  of  which 
the  new  work  now  consists  are,  at  the  same  time,  less  extensive  and  more 
complete  than  the  five  volumes  of  the  first  one.  Yery  few  of  the  wood 
engravings  which  illustrate  these  four  volumes,  and  none  of  the  lithochromes, 
appeared  in  the  first  work. 

With  regard  to  the  text,  in  compiling  which  I  have  made  free  use  of  the 
works  of  my  former  collaborateurs  (so  few  of  whom,  alas  !  are  alive  to  receive 
mjr  thanks),  I  have  not  scrupled  to  avail  myself  of  the  excellent  works  which 
have  appeared  since  the  publication  of  the  first  "  Middle  Ages,"  and  which 
have  enabled  me  to  recast  altogether  certain  parts  of  this  book.  Thus,  to 
speak  only  of  the  present  volume,  I  have  revised  the  chapters  on  Philosophy 
and  Universities,  after  the  valuable  treatises  on  philosophy  and  history  by 
M.  Ch.  Jourdain ;  the  chapter  on  Romances,  after  the  latest  researches  of 
M.  Paulin  Paris  and  the  works  of  MM.  Gaston  Paris  and  Leon  Gautier  ;  and 
the  chapter  on  Popular  Songs,  after  the  report  of  M.  Ampere  to  the  Committee 
of  the  Learned  Societies.  If  I  have  succeeded  in  bringing  into  my  work  some 
of  the  fresh  information  which  I  have  derived  in  abundance  from  my  con- 
temporaries, the  credit  lies  with  them.  But  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that 
each  of  my  chapters  forms  a  sort  of  monograph,  and  that  this  monograph  has 
often  been  made  the  subject  of  one,  or  even  of  several  special  treatises. 

I  coxild  only  make  a  succinct,  and  of  ten  incomplete,  summary  in  compiling 
this  book,  which  comprises  so  many  different  subjects ;  but  I  have  at  all  events 
conformed  as  nearly  as  possible  to  the  instructions  of  the  late  M.  "Firm  in  - 
Didot,  who  urged  me  to  "  leave  to  others  the  display  of  profound  and  minute 
erudition ;  content  yourself  with  being  an  ingenious,  intelligent,  and,  if 
possible,  an  agreeable  interpreter ;  try  to  make  yourself  read  and  under- 
stood by  everybody.  The  greatest  successes  are  achieved  less  by  savants  than 
by  vulgar isers." 

PAUL  LACROIX 

(Bibliophile  Jacob). 


TABLE    OF    CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

UNIVERSITIES,  SCHOOLS,  STUDENTS 1 

Legend  of  the  foundation  of  the  Paris  University  by  Charlemagne. — The  Schoola  of  the 
Notre-Dame  Cloisters. — Origin  of  the  name  University. — -The  organization  of  the 
University. — The  four  Nations  and  the  four  Faculties. — The  Rector  and  the  other 
officers  of  the  University. — The  great  and  the  little  messengers. — Privileges  of  the 
University. — Its  power  and  its  decadence. — Its  political  role. — Creation  of  provincial 
Universities. — Great  Schools  of  the  Rue  du  Fouarre. — The  Paris  Colleges. — Turbu- 
lence of  the  Students. — Their  Games. — Their  Festivals. — The  Lendit  Fair. — Foreign 
Universities. 

PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES 41 

Annihilation  of  the  Pagan  Philosophy. — New  Christian  Philosophy. — Martianus  Capella. 
— Boethius  and  Cassiodorus. — Isidore  of  Seville. — Bede,  Alcuin,  and  Eaban  Maurus. 
— John  Scotus  Erigena. — Origin  of  Scholasticism. — Gerbert. — Realism  and  Nomi- 
nalism.— Beranger  of  Tours. — Eoscelin  and  St.  Anselm. — William  of  Champeaux  and 
Abelard. — Gilbert  de  la  Porree  and  St.  Bernard. — Amaury  de  Bene. — Albertus 
Magnus  and  St.  Thomas  Aqunas. — The  Franciscans  and  the  Dominicans. — "William 
of  Ockham.  —  Decadence  of  Scho'asticism.  —  Platonists  and  Aristotelians. — The 
Philosophy  of  the  Renaissance. — The  Lutheran  Schools. — P.  Ramus. — Montaigne. 

MATHEMATICAL  SCIENCES 77 

Ancient  Systems  of  the  Planetary  World. — Ptolemy  and  Aristarchus  of  Samos. — 
Boethius,  Pappus,  and  Gerbert. — Schools  of  Bagdad. — Mathematical  School  in  Spain, 
Italy,  England,  and  France. — Astronomical  Researches  of  the  Arabs. — Roger  Bacon 
and  Master  Pierre.  —  Albertus  Magnus  and  St.  Thomas  Aquinas.  —  Progress  of 
Mathematics. — Popes  and  Kings  protectors  of  the  Exact  Sciences. — The  King  of 
Hungary,  Matthias  Corvinus. — Principal  Worlcs  composed  in  the  Fifteenth  Century. 
— Pie  Mirandola. — Peter  Ramus. — Tj'cho  Brahe  and  Copernicus. 


NATURAL  SCIENCES 105 

Natural  Sciences  in  Antiquity. — Their  Decadence  in  the  Middle  Ages. — Rural  Economy 
in  the  time  of  Charlemagne. — The  Monk  Strabus. — Botanical  Gardens. — Botany  aided 
by  Medicine.  —  Hildegarde,  Abbess  of  Bingen. — Peter  of  Crescentiis.  —  Vincent  of 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS. 


Beauvais.  —  Fables  and  Popular  Errors. — Jean  Dondi.  —  Bartholomew  G-Iauvil. — 
Naturalist  Travellers. —  Aristotle  and  Pliny  restored  to  honour. — Gardens  in  the 
Sixteenth  Century.  —  The  Conquests  of  Science  in  Travel.  —  Bernard  Palissy.  — ■ 
G.  Agricola.  —  Conrad  Gesner. — Methods  of  Botany.  —  Painters  and  Engravers  of 
Natural  History. 

MEDICAL  SCIENCES 134 

Decline  of  Medicine  after  the  death  of  Hippocrates. — The  School  of  Galen. — The  School 
of  Alexandria. — Talismans  and  Orisons  against  Illness. — Monastic  Medicine. — Female 
Doctors. — The  Arab  Schools. — The  Schools  of  Naples,  Monte  Casino,  and  Salerno. — 
The  Hospitallers. — The  School  of  Cordova. — Epidemics  coming  from  the  East. — The 
appearance  of  Military  Surgery. — The  Schools  of  Montpellier  and  Paris. — Lanfranc  as 
upholder  of  Surgery.— College  of  St.  Cosmo  at  Paris. — Guy  de  Chauliac. — Rivalry  of 
the  Surgeons  and  the  Barbers.— Medical  Police. — The  Occult  Sciences  in  Medicine. — 
Rivalry  of  the  Surgeons  and  the  Doctors. — The  Doctors  in  the  Sixteenth  Century. 
—Andrew  Vesalius. — Ambroise  Pare. 

CHEMISTEY  AND  ALCHEMY 174 

Diocletian  burns  the  Books  of  Chemistry. — Hiiroun  Al-Raschid  protects  the  Sacred  Art. 
—  Geber,  one  of  the  first  Chemists. —  Rhazes. —  Chemistry  in  honour  amongst  the 
Saracens. — Avicenna,  Serapion,  Mesue. — Albucasis  and  Averroes. —  Morienus  the 
Solitary. — Albertus  Magnus  and  Gerbert. — Vincent  of  Beauvais. — Raymond  LuUi. 
■ — The  Lullists,  or  Dreamers. — Arnauld  de  Villeneuve. — Roger  Bacon. — Invention  of 
Spectacles. — Alchemy  in  the  Fiiteenth  Century. — J.  B.  Porta,  the  Italian. — Origin 
of  the  Rosicrucians. — Paracelsus.  —  George  Agricola.  —  Conrad  Gesner. — Cornelius 
Agrippa. — The  Story  of  Nicholas  Flamel. — Alchemy  engenders  Metallurgy. 

THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES 200 

The  Origin  of  Magic. — The  Savants  and  Philosophers  reputed  to  be  Magicians.^ 
Different  Forms  of  Occult  Sciences. — Oneiromancy. — Oneirocritics  and  Diviners. — 
Necromancy. — Practices  of  the  Necromancers. — Astrology. — Celebrated  Astrologers. 
— Chiromancy. — Aeromancy  and  other  kinds  of  Divination. — The  Angelic  Art  and 
the  Notorious  Art. — The  Spells  of  the  Saints. — Magic. — The  Evocation  of  Good  and 
Evil  Genii. — Pacts  with  Demons. — Celebrated  Magicians. — Formulae  and  Circles. — 
Incense  and  Perfumes. — Talismans  and  Images. — The  tormenting  of  Wax  Images. 
—The  Sagittarii.— The  Evil  Eye.— Magic  Alchemy.— Cabalism.— The  Fairies,  Elfs, 
and  Spirits. — The  Were-wolves. — The  Sabbath. — A  Trial  for  Sorcery. 

POPULAR  BELIEFS 237 

Superstitions  derived  from  Paganism. — Saturnalia  of  the  Ancients. — Festival  of  the 
Barbatorii. — Fi  stival  of  the  Deacons. — The  Liberty  of  December,  or  the  Fools'  Feast. 
— Festival  of  the  Ass. — The  Sens  Ritual. — Feast  of  the  Innocents. — The  Moneys  of 
the  Innocents  and  the  Fools. — Brotherhood  of  the  Mh-e  Sotte. — The  Mere  Folle  of 
Dijon. — The  Serpent,  or  the  Devil. — Purgatory  of  St.  Patrick. — The  Wandering  Jew. 
— The  Antichiist  and  the  End  of  the  World. — The  Prophecies  of  the  Sibyls,  of 
Merlin,  and  of  Nostradamus. — Dreams  and  Visions. — Spectres  and  Apparitions. — 
Prodigies. — Talismans. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS. 


XI 


GEOGEAPHICAL  SCIENCE 265 

Latin  and  Greek  Geographers. — Measurement  of  the  Roman  World.— Voyages  of  Hip- 
palus  and  Diogenes.— Jlarmus  of  TjT-e,  Pomponius  Mela,  and  Ptolemy.— Coloured 
and  Figurative  Itineraries.— Barbarian  Invasions.— Stephen  of  Byzantium.— Geogra- 
phical Ignorance  from  the  Sixth  to  the  Tenth  Century.— Charlemagne  and  Albertus 
Magnus.— Dicuil.— Geography  amongst  the  Arabs.— Master  Peter  and  Roger  Bacon. 
—Vincent  of  Beauvais.— Asiatic  Travellers  in  the  Thirteenth  Century.— Portuguese 
Navigation.— The  Planisphere  of  Fra  Mauro.— First  Editions  of  Ptolemy.— Maritime 
E.xpeditioDs  in  the  Fifteenth  Century.— Christopher  Columbus  and  Amerigo  Vespucci. 
—Spanish,  Dutch,  and  French_Traveller3,  &c.,  in  the  Sixteenth  Century. 

HERALDIC  SCIENCE 296 

The  fabled  Origin  of  Armorial  Bearings.— Heraldic  Science  during  the  Feudal  Period.— 
The  First  Armorial  Bearings  in  the  Eleventh  and  Twelfth  Centuries.— The  Meaning 
of  the  Colours  and  Divisions  on  the  Shield.— Kings  of  Arms  and  Heralds.— Heraldic 
Figures.— Quadrupeds,  Birds,  Fishes.— Plants,  Flowers,  Fruits.- The  Legend  of  the 
Fleur-de-lis.— Emblematic  Arms.— Prevalence  of  Armorial  Bearings  in  the  Thirteenth 
Century.— Helmets  and  Crests.— Mottoes  and  Emblems.— Traders'  Sign-boards.— 
Usurpers  of  Armorial  Bearings.— Decadence  of  the  Science  of  Heraldry. 

PROVERBS 325 

Antiquity  of  Proverbs  amongst  all  Nations.- Proverbs  in  the  Middle  Ages.— Solomon  and 
Marcoul.— The  Philosophers'  Proverbs.— Rural  and  Vulgar  Proverbs.- Guillaume  de 
Tignonville.— Proverbs  of  the  Tilleim.—"  Dit  de  I'Apostoile."— Historical  Proverbs. 
—Proverbs  in  Works  of  Prose  and  Verse.— French  Proverbs  in  the  Sixteenth  Century. 
—Foreign  Proverbs.— The  Use  of  Proverbs.— Constable  de  Bourbon's  Collection  of 
Proverbs. 

LANGUAGES 345 

The  Origin  of  Languages.— Decadence  of  the  Latin  Language.— The  Celtic  and  Teutonic 
Languages.— The  Rustic  Language.— Common  Neo-Latin  Dialects.— First  Evidences 
of  the  French  Language.— The  Oath  of  Louis  the  German  in  842.— Laws  of  William 
the  Conqueror.— The  Oc  and  Oil  Languages.— Poem  of  Boethius.- The  "  Chanson  do 
Roland."— Fabliaux.— The  "Romance  of  the  Rose."— Villehardouin.— The  Sire  de 
JoinviUe.—Froissart.— Influence  of  Flemish  Writers.- Antoine  de  la  Sale.— The 
"Cent  Nouvelles  nouveUes"  and  Villon.— Hellenism  and  Italianism.— Clement 
Marot  and  Rabelais.— Ronsard,  Montaigne,  and  Malherbe. 


ROIIANCES 


863 


Origin  of  the  Name  Romance.— Greek  and  Latin  Romances.— The  Discussion  of  the 
Savants  as  to  the  first  French  Romances.— These  Romances  were  the  Emanation  of 
Popular  Songs  and  Latin  Chronicles.- Ancient  Romances  in  Prose  and  Rhyme.— The 
Three  Materu  (Metres)  of  the  Chamom  de  6-V«/«.— Their  Classification.— Manuscripts 
of  the  Jugglers.— Assemblies  and  r™Ki'«!(rj.— The  "Chanson  de  Roland."— Progress 
of  nomancerie  (Ballad  Songs)  during  the  Crusades.— Breton  Romances.- Tristan.— 
Launcelot— Merlin.-The  Holy  Grail.— Decadence  of  Romances  in  the  Fourteenth 
Centurj-.- Remodelling  of  the  Eariy  Romances.- The  Short  Romances  of  the  Fif- 
teenth Century.— Romance  Abroad.— The  "  Amadis." 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

POPULAR  SONGS 396 

Definition  and  Classification  of  Popular  Song. — Songs  of  the  Germans,  the  Gauls,  the 
Goths,  and  the  Franks. — They  are  collected  by  order  of  Charlemagne. — Vestiges  of 
the  most  Ancient  Songs. — The  Historical  Songs  of  France  down  to  the  Sixteenth 
Century. — Romanesque  Songs. — Eeligious  Songs. — The  Christmas  Carols  and  the 
Canticles. — Legendary  Songs. — Domestic  Songs. — The  Music  of  the  Popular  Songs. 
—  Provincial  Songs. — The  Songs  of  Germanj*. — The  Minnesingers  and  the  Meister- 
eingers. — The  Songs  of  England,  of  Scotland,  and  of  Northern  Countries. — The  Songs 
of  Greece,  of  Italy,  and  of  Spain. 

NATIONAL  POETRY 421 

Decadence  of  Latin  Poetry. — Origins  of  Vulgar  Poetry. — Troubadours,  Trouveres,  and 
Jugglers.— Eutebeuf. — Thibaud  of  Navarre  and  his  School. — Marie  de  France. — 
"Eomance  of  the  Eenard." — The  Guyot  Bible. — "The  Eomance  of  the  Eose." — The 
Minnesingers.  —  Dante.  —  "  The  Eomancero." —  The  Meistersingers.  —  Petrarch.  — 
English  Poets  ;  Chaucer. — Eustache  Deschamps,  Alain  Chartier,  Charles  d'Orleans, 
Villon. — Chambers  of  Ehetoric. — Poets  of  the  Court  of  Burgundy. — Modern  Latin 
Poetry. — The  Poems  of  Chivalry  in  Italy. — Clement  Marot  and  his  School. — The 
Epic  Poems ;  Tasso,  Camoens. — Poets  of  Germany  and  of  the  Northern  Countries. — 
Eousard  and  his  School. — Poetry  under  the  Valois  Kings. 

CHRONICLES,  HISTORIES,  MEMOIRS " 455 

First  Historians  of  the  Church.  —  The  Last  Latin  and  Greek  Historians. — Latin 
Chronicles:  Marius,  Cassiodorus,  Jornandes.  —  Gregory  of  Tours.— Fredegaire. — 
Monastic  Chronicles. — Chronicles  from  the  Eighth  to  the  Eleventh  Century. — 
Historians  of  the  Crusades. — Historians  of  Foreign  Countries. — Latin  Chronicles  of 
the  Abbey  of  St.  Denis. — Chronicles  in  Ehyme. — Early  French  Chronicles. — Ville- 
hardouin. — The  Sire  de  JoinviUe. — Chronicles  of  St.  Denis. — Froissart. — Monstrelet. 
— Chastellain. — French  Translations  of  the  Ancient  Historians. — Library  of  Charles  V. 
— Chroniclers  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — Historians  of  the  Court  of  Burgundy. — 
Private  Chronicles  and  Lives  of  Illustrious  Men.— Personal  Memous. — Histories  of 
France  in  the  Sixteenth  Century. 

THE  DRAMA 488 

Disappearance  of  the  Ancient  Theatre. — First  Essays  of  the  Christian  Theatre. — Pious 
Eepresentations  in  the  Churches. — The  Latin  Drama  of  Hrosvitha. — The  Mystery  of 
Adam.— The  Great  Mysteries.— Progress  of  the  Theatre  in  Em-ope.- Brothers  of  the 
Passion  in  Paris. — Public  Eepresentations. — The  Mystery  of  St.  Louis. — Comedy 
since  the  Thirteenth  Century. — Jean  de  la  Halle. — The  Farce  de  Pathelin. — The 
,  Bazoche. — The  Enfants  sans  Souci. — The  Theatre  in  Spain  and  in  Italy. — Creation  of 

the  Literary  Theatre,  in  the  Sixteenth  Centmy,  in  b'rance. 

CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY 519 

The  Oratorical  Genius  of  the  Gauls. — The  Origin  of  the  French  Bar. — Christian  Oratory 
in  the  First  Centuries.— Gallo-Koman  Oratory. — Preachers  and  Missionaries. — 
Orators  of  the  Crusades. — St.  Bernard  and  St.  Dominic. — Pieadings  at  the  Bar 
under  Louis  XI. — Political  Oratory  under  Charles  VI. — Popular  Preachers. — Orators 
of  the  Eeformation. — Orators  of  the  League. — Parliamentary  Harangues. — Oratory 
in  the  States-General. — Military  Oratory. 


TABLE    OF   ILLUSTRATIONS. 


I.  CHEOMOLITHOGEAPHS. 


Plate  To  face  pa^e 

1.  The  King  of  Navarre,  Henri  d'Albret, 

me*  ting  Marguerite  in  the  Gardens 
of  Alenijon.  Fac-simile  of  Miniature 
of  the  Sixteenth  Century  . .  Frontis- 
piece. 

2.  Georges  Chastelain  offering   his   Book 

to  Charles,  Duke  of  Burgundy.  Mi- 
niature of  the  Fifteenth  Century      ..        20 

3.  The  Resurrection  of  the  Dead  and  the 

Weighing  of  Souk's  in  the  Balanre. 
Miniature  of  the  Thirteenth  Century       61 

4.  The  Sibyl  of  Tiburtis   announcing   to 

Augustus  the  C"ining  of  Jesus  Christ. 
Miniature  of  the  Sixteenth  Century  .     210 

5.  Jlap  of  America.     Reduced  Fac-simile 

of  a  Jlap  from  the  Spanish  Atlas 
executed  in  1-582  by  Joan  M.artines  .     2C0 

6.  The  King-at-Arms  shows  the  Due  de 

Bourbon  the  Armorial  Bearings  of 
the  Chevaliers  who  are  to  t:ike  part 
in  the  Tournament.  Miniature  of 
the  Fifteenth  Century    300 


Plate  To  face  page 

7.  The  Arms  and  Emblematic  Pevice  of 

Marguerite  of  Xavarre.      Miniature 

of  the  Sixteenth  Century 314 

8.  Adenez,   the    King   of   the    llinstrels. 

Miniature  of  the  Thirteenth  Century     402 

9.  The  Virgin,  Queen  of  Heaven.    Picture 

in  the  Gallery  at  Frai  kfort-on-the- 
Maine.     Fifteenth  Century 4  '  2 

10.  Battle   of   Jonathan    against    Baccidc. 

Jliniature  showing  Embattled  Castle 
and  Military  Uniforms  of  the  Fif- 
teenth Century    4 .56 

11.  Siege  of  a  Town  defended  by  the  Bur- 

gundians  under  Charles  VI.  Minia- 
ture of  the  Sixteenth  Century 4  74 

12.  The  Ancient  Theatre.     Miniature  from 

the  Terence  of  Charles  V.  Fifteenth 
Century     4P0 

13.  The  Preaching  of  St.  Stephen.     Fresco 

by  Fra  Angelico,  at  the  Vatican. 
Fifteenth  Century .526 


II.  ENGEA^^NGS. 


Page 

Abduction  of  Helen,  The .515 

Alchemist,  The,  after  Vriese   229 

„  German    185 

,,  Laboratory  of  an    197 

Alexander  doing  Battle  with  the  Beast  with 

three  Horns     278 

,,  doing  Battle  wilh  While  Lions     279 

,,  engaged  in  Combat  with   Men 

having  Horses'  Heads  204 

,,          engaged  in  Combat  with  Pigs  . . ,    207 
,,  fif'hting  the  Dragons   115,117 


Page 
Alfonso  X.,  the  Wise,  King  of  Castile  ....     4(16 

Aniichiist,  Reign  of 257 

Apocalyp.se,  Miniature  from  a  Commtntary 

upon  the 224,  250 

Apiistle  of  Christianity,  Preaching  of  an   ..     52.5 

Arc  with  Double  Compartment 99 

Arms  of  Alfonso  X.,  King  of  Castile 306 

„        Anne  of  Briltariy     318 

„        Catherine  of  Arragf^in     309 

,,        Knianuel,  King  of  Portugal 30.5 

Fn.nce,  Fifteenth  Century    323 


ENGRA  VINGS. 


Arms  of  Godfrey  de  Bouillon 307 

„       Henry   V.   of  England  joined   to 

those  of  Catherine  de  Valois 487 

„       Joan  of  Arc 310 

„       John  II.,  King  of  France 305 

„       Martin  I.,  King  of  Arragon 305 

„       Mary  Tudor,  Queen  of  England  . .  315 

,,       Orsini  Family 311 

„       Paul  III 308 

„       Picoolomiui  Family    305 

„       Eiohard  Co3ur-de-Lion 305 

„       Robert  of  Anjou,  King  of  Naples..  306 

„       WiUiam,  Prince  of  Orange    306 

Astronomer  and  Coamographist,  German  . .  98 

„          with  Magic  Figures     92 

Astronomy,  A  Lesson  in 87 

„          with  the  Three  Fates 209 

Author,  The,   of  the  Poem  entitled  "  Le 

Debat  de  la  Noire  et  do  la  Tannee"  ....  439 

Bacon,  the  Alchemist    183 

Ballad  Singer  accompanying  himself  upon 

the  Violin   411 

Banner  of  Amiens  Butchers     320 

,,          Apothecaries  of  Caen 158 

„         Apothecaries  of  St.  Lo  158 

„          Bethune  Tailors 320 

„         Bordeaux  Upholsterers 320 

,,          Calais  Innkeepers   320 

,,  Corporation   of  Apothecaries  in 

the  Mayenne    173 

,,         Corporation    of    Physicians    at 

Amiens 167 

,,  Corporation  of  Physicians  in  the 

Mayenne 167 

,,          Corporation  of  Physicians  at  Vire  167 

„         Corporation  of  Surgeons  at  Caen  167 
,,         Corporation  of  Surgeons  at  Le 

Mans     167 

„         Corporation     of     Surgeons     at 

Saintes 167 

„         Douai  Shoemakers S2l 

„         Lyons  Tinmen    321 

„          Paris  Founders    321 

„         Pin  and  Needle  Makers    321 

„          St.  L6  Blacksmiths 321 

„         St.  Lo  Dyers  320 

„          St.  Omer  Cobblers 320 

,,         Tours  Slaters 321 

Banners  and  Coats-of-Arms  displayed  from 

the  Heralds'  Lodge   312 

Bas-relief  in  the  Church  of  St.  Julian  the 

Poor 23 

Battle  of  Beggars  and  Peasants 75 

Beadles    of    the    University    of    Pont-a- 

Mousson 163 

Betrothal  Interview  between  the  Archduke 

Maximilian  and  Mary  of  Burgundy 473 


Page 
Binding   of  Durand's  "Rationale,"  Frag- 
ment of  a 552 

Boelhius  takes  Counsel  of  Dame  Philosophy  42 
Border  of   a   Page   in   Manuscript   of  the 

Fifteenth  Century 125 

Bourbon,  Due  de,  armed  Cap-a-pie    313 

Brunehaut  superintending  the  making  of 
the  Seven  Roads  which  led  from  the  City 

of  Bavay 274 

Buffoon  holding  the  Bauble     241 

„       playing  the  Bagpipe    241 

Burgundy  Cross,  Origin  of  the   481 

Calendar  of  a  "  Book  of  Hours,"  Miniature 

fromthe 90 

"  Cancionero,"  The,   of  Juan  Alfonso   de 

Baena  444 

Carol  in  Burgundy  Patois,  with  Music  ....  408 

Casting  a  Bell 184 

Castle  of  Loves,  The 441 

Cathedral  of  Cordova    141 

Celtic  Monument   137 

Centaur,  The 85 

Chariot  of  the  Mere  Folk 247 

Charlatan  performing  an  Operation   169 

Charlemagne,  Conquest  of  Jerusalem  by  . .  463 

„             Coronation  of    461 

„             Vision  of    208 

Charles  VII.  entering  Rouen  477 

„  setting  out  to  besiege  the  Town 

of  Harfleur 479 

„  Vigiles  de 467,  470 

Chartier,  Alain,  comforted  bj'  Hope   438 

Chest  of  Carved  "Wood  of  the  Fourteenth 

Century    603 

"Chevalier     Delibere,"     Miniature     from 

the 393,  509,  513 

Christina  de  Pisan  being  urged  to  write  a 

Book  of  Ethics    359 

"  Citj'  of  God,"  Miniature  of  the     67 

Clovis,  Equestrian  Statue  of    458 

Comb  made  of  Carved  Wood,  of  the  Fif- 
teenth Century    340 

Compiler,  A 368 

Conflagration  of  the  Bel-Aoceuil  Prison   . .  356 

Copyist  writing  upon  Vellum 391 

Counter- Seal  of  the  English  Nation  4 

„  Faculty    of    Medicine, 

Paris 150 

J,                 French  Nation    4 

„                  Normandy  Nation  ....  5 

„                 Picardy  Nation    5 

,,                  Rheims  University ... .  6 

„                  University  of  Paris    , .  56 

Court  Jester,  A 331 

Cure  through  the  Intercession  of  a  Healing 

Spirit    144 

Dame  Philosophy 71 


ENGRA  VnXGS. 


Page 

Dniifo's  "  Divina  Commcdia,"  Fragraont  of  358 

Poiitli  proaiding  over  Battles  486 

Devioo  of  Callieriiio  do'  Jledicis 317 

„        Clmrlos  IX.,  King  of  Franco 316 

Charles  V 316 

„        Flemish  Gueux    332 

„        Francjois  I.,  King  of  France  ....  332 

„         Henry  III.,  King  of  France 316 

„         Henry  VIL,  King  of  England  . .  316 
„        Jean  sans  Peur,  Duke  of  Bvir- 

gundy     337 

„        Leo  X 316 

„        Louis  XIL,  King  of  France 332 

Louis,  Duke  of  Orleans  (1406)  . .  337 

Devil,  Angel  enchaining  the    222 

„     The,  attempting  to  seize  a  Magician  .  223 

Discovery  of  San  Domingo 289 

Doctor  Death 153 

,,      Flemish,  haranguing  the  People    . .  539 

Doctor's  House,  Interior  of  a 157 

Dragons   221 

Drawings  of  Proverhs,  Adages,  &o 342,  343 

Dream  of  Childerio    261 

Druids 202 

Envoys  from  the  Soudan 471 

Equatorial  Rings    101 

Esus,  the  God  of  Nature 107 

Fantastic  Forms  and  Figures  seen  in  the 

Sky  in  the  Sixteenth  Century 217 

Farce  de  Fafhelin,  Wood  Engravings  of  the  508 

First  Missionary  Apostles,  Preaching  of  the  529 

Fleet  of  Maximus,  Arrival  at  Cologne  of  the  273 

Fresco,  Fragment  of,  by  Simone  Memmi  . .  50 
Furnace,    Eetorts,    Stills,    and    Distillery 

Apparatus    193 — 195 

Galley  of  the  Sixteenth  Century 293 

Gallic  Vulcan,  The    175 

GargouiUe,  The 252 

Geber,  The  Alchemist   178 

"  Genealogy  of  the  Kings  of  France  and 

of  England,"  Fragment  of  the    475 

Genethliac,  or  Astrological  Horoscope  ....  213 

God  creating  the  "World  by  Compass 109 

"Grammaire  Latine,"  by  ^lius  Donatus, 

Specimen  of  a  Page  of  the    349 

Gregory  the  Great  sending  Missionaries  to 

England 527 

Hermes,  The  Alchemist    176 

Horace's  Poems 422 

Hotel-Dieu,  A  Ward  in  the     148 

Hour  of  Death,  The 54 

Initial  designed  by  Pen    3 

Instrument  of  Mathematical  Precision  for 

designing  Objects  in  Perspective    97 


Pago 
Instruments  of  Mathematical  Precision  for 

executing  Portraits    90 

Italian  Doctors  65 

Jerusalem,  Coronation  of  Charlemagne  in 

the  City  of  373 

Joseph  of  Arimathea,  Death  of    387 

Joshua,  King   David,  and  Judas   Macca- 

bfeus     366 

Khan  of  Tartary,  Coronation  of  the   465 

King  of  Arms 301 

Knight,  Arming  of  a 389 

Languages,  The  Institution  of    348 

Launcelot  and  Guinivere 385 

Le  Feron    presenting  a  Work    to    King 

Henry  II 319 

Leper  House  146 

Lequeux,  Jean,  Messenger  in  the  Diocese  of 

Laon 14 

Leyden  University,  External  View  of  ... .  38 
Lines  on  Left  Hand,  aud  their  Horoscopic 

Denominations    215 

"  Livre  de  Faits  d'Armes  et  de  Chevalerie," 

Miniatures  from  the   483,  484 

LuUi,  Raymond,  The  Alchemist 180 

Mandeville,  John  de,  taking  leave  of  King 

Edward  III 285 

Man-dog,  Man-wolf,  Man-bull,  and  Man- 
pig     233 

Map  of  Gaul,  Fragment  of 271 

„       Island  of  Sardinia   269 

„        Island  of  Taprobana  287 

„        Roman  World 267 

Marine  World,  The   119 

Mark,  King,  stabbing  Tristan 383 

Marriage  of  a  Young  Man  and  an   Old 

Woman    226 

Mathematician  Monks 81 

Melusine,  The  Fay     263 

Merlin,  transformed  into  a  Student,  meets 

the  Fairy  Viviana 386 

Metals,   Colours,  and  Furs  interpreted  by 

the  Engravers  of  the  Middle  Ages 297 

Miner  182 

Minnesingers 415 

Mint  of  the  Fifteenth  Century    186 

„      Officer  of  the    187 

Monks  chanting  the  Litanies  for  the  Dead. .  254 

,,      engaged  in  Agriculture    112 

Monsters  bom  from  the  Deluge 251 

Morienus,  The  Alchemist 198 

Mosque  of  Cordova    433 

Mountebank  Seller  of  Drugs,  The  Stage 

of  a   517 

Musicians,  German    417 


ENGRA  VINGS. 


Narcissus  at  the  Fountain    356 

Natural  Sciences,  The,  in  the  Presence  of 

Philosophy '  ^ 

Navigators  who  have  mistaken  a  Whale's 

Back  for  an  Island 277 

Noah's  Ark HI 

Old-maid  Witch 231 

Operalor,  An 161 

Order  of  St.  Dominic,  The  Glories  of  the  . .  533 

Paracelsus,  The  Alchemist  191 

Pegasus    435 

Perseus  and  Andromeda   83 

Personiiication  of  Music,  The 413 

PhOip  the  Good  intrusts  the  Education  of 

his  Son  to  Georges  Chastelain 401 

Phoenix  rising  from  his  Ashes 133 

Physician,  The 139,  155 

Plan  of  Clermont  en  Beauvaisis 281 

Planetary  Systems,  The   79 

Plenary  Court  of  Dame  Justice  52 

Poem  by  Wolfram  of  Eschenbach,  Fragment 
of,  with  the  Notation  of  the  Thirteenth 

Century    431 

Poetical  and  Musical  Congress  at  Wartburg 

in  1207 429 

Poetry  and  Music 397 

Portraits  : — 

Abbatia,  Bernard   104 

Ariosto 447 

Baif 452 

Claude  of  France    170 

Clement  IV 58 

Commines,  Philippe  de 485 

Cujas,  J 518 

Daurat,  J 452 

Despence,  Claude   544 

Du  Bellay   452 

Dumesnil,  B o46 

Dumoulin,  C 547 

Erasmus  74 

Faye,  J 546 

Froissart 47S 

Gamier,  Eobert 518 

Gregory  IX 533 

Henri  III 549 

Honorius  III 532 

Hospitiil,  M.  de  r  548 

Innocent  IV I59 

Jodille 452 

Lemiiitre,  G 547 

Lorraine,  Cardinal  do     544 

Marguerite  of  Valois 4.51 

Marot,  Clement 610 

Pibiiic 546 

Pithou 548 


Page 
Portraits : — 

Ponthus  de  Thyard    453 

Remy  Belleau 452 

Eonsard    452 

S;mnazar 445 

Savonarola 541 

Seguier,  P 547 

Sixtus  Quintus    545 

Tycho  Brahe 103 

Prague  University,  Rector  of  the   35 

Precious  Metals,  The  Extraction  of  the     . .  188 

„             „       Foundry  of 189 

Prince  of  Darkness     219 

Printers'  Marks : — 

Berton,  Barthelemy 130 

Bonhomme,  Mace  259 

Brie,  Jehan  de    341 

Eslienne,  Charles      132 

Fezandat,  Michel    344 

Le  Dru,  Pierre    511 

Morrhy,  Gerard 264 

St.  Denis,  Jehan     102 

Tory,  Geoffrey    362 

Verard,  Antoine 395 

Procession  of  the  Bceuf  Gras    239 

"  Prose  of  the  Ass,"  plain     244 

„             „             set  to  Music     243 

Provost  of  Paris,  Servants  of  the,  apologizing  3 1 

Ptolemy's  Sj'stem 94 

Quadrant,  Small     99 

Reception  of  a  Doctor   17 

Representative   Characters  of  the  Ancient 

Theatre,  from  Terence 489—491,  493,  495 

Riddle  taken  from  the  "  Heures  de  Nostre- 

dame  " 34 1 

River  Fishing      123 

Robert,    King,   composing    Sequences   and 

Responses  in  Lutin 353 

Robert  le    Diable    forced    to    declare    his 

Identity    499 

Sacred  Oratory   537 

St.  Augustine 59 

St.  Bonaventure 61 

St.  Friincis  of  Assisi  talking  to  the  Birds  . .  113 
St.  Germain  des  Pres  and  the  Pre  aux-  Clercs  63 
St.  James  the  Elder  combating  the  Enchant- 
ments of  a  Magician 235 

St.  Jerome  and  two  Cardinals     521 

St.  Louis,  King  of  France,  going  to  Matins  19 

St.  Mark  Library,  The,  Venice   371 

St.  Patrick,  The' Purgatory  of     253 

"'•t.  Peter  as  Pope,  Imaginary  Election  of. .  367 

School,  Iiiterior  of  a 24 

„      of  Mendicant  Monks,  A   8 

Schoolmaster,  The,  from  the  Dame  Macabre  28 


ENGRA  VINGS. 


Pago 
Schooliimster,   The,  after  a  Diawiug    by 

Soquiind  29 

Sca-Dog,  The 120 

Seal  of  Aix  University 7 

„       Balliol  College 37 

,,      Bouigos  University 7 

,,       English  Nation 4 

,,       Faculty  of  Law,  Prague 76 

,,       Faculty  of  Medicine,  Paris ISO 

„       Faculty  of  Tiieology,  Paris    66 

,,       Faculty  of  Theology,  Prague     ....  76 
,,       Four     Kations,     or     Faculty     of 

Arts    10 

,.       French  Nation 4 

„      Normandy  Nation    5 

,,       Picai'dy  Nation 5 

„      Rheinis  University  6 

„      Town  of  Bunwich    275 

,,       University  of  Cambridge    37 

„       University  of  Oxford 37 

„       University  of  Prague 37 

Sermon     upon     the     Vanity     of    Human 

Things     543 

"  Serventois  "  of  the  Trouveur,  Queues  of 

Bethune,  with  Music     427 

Seven  Saints  of  Brittany,  The     459 

Sextant,  Astronomical 101 

Sheep-sheai-ing  121 

Shepherds   celebrating    the   Birth    of    the 

Messiah   407 

Shoemaker  and  bis  Customer 338 

„          fitting  a  Shoe 338 

Shops  in  an  Apothecary's  Street     161 

Signature  at  Foot  of  Autograph  Letter  of 

Christopher  Columbus 291 

Siren,  Token  of  Gerard  Morrhy 264 

Solomon  and  Marconi   327 

Song  of  the  Crusaders,  set  to  Music   400 

,,       Druidic     Epoch,    A,   AYorJs    and 

Music 393 

„        Thibaud,    Count     of    Champagne, 

with  Music 428 

,,       Troubadour,  with  Music    424 

Stiff  of  the  Dijon  Lifantry  in  14S2     249 


Page 
Stained  Glass : — 

Battle  of   Roncevaux  and    Death    of 

Roland     37o 

Legend  of  St.  Nicholas 33 

Stork  its  own  Doctor,  The 138 

Surgeon,  German  165 

Swiss  Courier 13 

Table  Omaraeut     129 

Teims    of    Heraldry.      Partitions    of    the 

Shield 302,  303 

Tower  of  Babel,  Construction  of  the 347 

Tree  of  Beings  and  Substances    51 

Tristan  at  the  Chase 381 

"  Trois  Morts  et  des  Trois  Vifs,"  Legend  of 

the 437 

Trouveur  accompanying  himself  upon  the 

Violin 425 

„          French 420 

University  Beadle 14 

„         of  Paris,  Rector  and  Doctor  of 

the 11 

„         of    Pont-a-MouSiOn,  Bachelors 

of  the 69 

,,         Teaching,  Allegorical  Composi- 
tion representing 623 

Vandeuil,  Master  Jean  de.  Proctor  of  the 

Picardy  Nation 12 

Vanity  of  Human  Things,  The 443 

Vegetable  Kingdom,  The     131 

Venetian  Gondola 419 

Vesalius,  Andrew 172 

"  Vigiles  du  Roi  Charles  VII.,"  Miniature 

from  the 550 

Vivien,  Count,  dedicating  a  Bible  to  Chailes 

the  Bold 46 

Vow  of  the  first  Companions  of  St.  Igna- 
tius     294 

Weeping-tree , 255 

Wheel  of  Fortune 43 

Wolf  cheating  the  Donkey,  The 329 


SCIENCE    AND    LETTERS 


THE     MIDDLE     AGES, 

AND    AT    THE 

PERIOD   OF   THE   RENAISSANCE. 


UNIVERSITIES,     SCHOOLS,     STUDENTS. 

Legend  of  the  foundation  of  the  Paris  LTniversity  by  Charlemagne. — The  Schools  of  the  Notre- 
Datne  Cloisters. — Origin  of  the  nanne  University, — The  organization  of  the  University. — The 
four  Nations  and  the  four  Faculties. — The  Rector  and  the  other  officers  of  the  University. — 
The  great  and  the  little  messengers.  —  Privileges  of  the  University. — Its  power  and  its 
decadence. — Its  political  role. — Creation  of  provincial  Universities. — Great  Schools  of  the 
Rue  du  Fouarre. — The  Paris  Colleges. — Turbulence  of  the  Students. — Their  Games. — 
Their  Festivals. — The  Lendit  Fair. — Foreign  Universities. 


HE  schools  of  Marseilles,  Autun,  Xarbonne, 
Ijyons,  Bordeaux,  snul  Touloiise,  wliich, 
under  the  Roman  dominion,  had,  thanks  to 
the  names  of  their  famous  professors  and 
pupils,  .such  as  the  poets  Petronius  and 
Ausonius,  Trogus  Pompeius  the  hi.storian, 
the  orators  Salvian  and  Cesareus,  &c.,  re- 
flected so  nuich  credit  \\\^ur^.  Gaul,  had,  in 
the  sixth  century  of  the  Christian  era, 
ceased  to  be  more  than  a  mere  souvenir. 
The  reign  of  Dagobert  (088)  -witnessed 
the  extinction  of  the  ancient  genius  of  the 
land.  The  clergy,  who  renuiined  the  sole  depo.sitaries  of  human  knowledge,  had 
allowed  themselves  to  be  enveloped,  in  their  turn,  in  the  gloom  of  ignorance, 
when  Charlemagne  set  to  work  to  In-ing  about  a  sort  of  intellectiud  regenera- 
tion   throughout    his  vast   einjiire.       Jiy  his  ordci's  the  Anglo-Saxon    monk 

n 


UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOIS,   STUDENTS. 


Aleuin  and  some  learned  foreign  clerks  •were  siunmoned  to  the  court.  It  was 
under  tlieii'  suj)ervision  that  he  created  within  the  walls  of  his  own  palace  an 
academjr,  to  which  he  made  a  point  of  belonging,  and  at  the  sittings  of  which 
he  was  sometimes  present.  The  mode  of  writing,  which  had  become  illegible, 
was  remodelled ;  the  Latin  tongue,  which  had  been  replaced  by  barbaric 
idioms,  resumed  its  place  ;  the  ancient  manuscripts,  which  were  Ij'ing  in  the 
monasteries,  were  revised  and  recopied  with  great  care  ;  and  thus  the  teach- 
inff  of  sciences  and  letters  began  to  flourish  anew  in  the  ecclesiastical  schools. 

So  it  was  that,  long  after  the  death  of  the  great  Emperor,  the  literary 
renaissance  which  was  attributed  to  him,  and  which  was  perpetuated  bj^  the 
legends  of  the  time,  also  acquired  for  him  the  title  of  patron  and  founder  of 
the  University  :  even  to  the  present  day  the  forehead  of  St.  Charlemagne 
remains  crowned  with  the  literary  aui'eole  coixferred  upon  him  by  the  grati- 
tude of  our  ancestors. 

"  In  those  days,"  says  Nicholas  Gilles,  a  chronicler  of  the  fifteenth  cen- 
tury, paraphrasing  a  passage  from  the  Carlovingian  chronicle  of  the  Monk 
of  St.  Gall,  "there  ai'rived  in  France  from  Ireland  two  Scotch  monks  of 
great  erudition,  and  verj^  saintlj^  men.  Thej'  preached  and  proclaimed  in  the 
cities  and  in  the  fields  that  they  had  knowledge  to  sell,  and  whoso  wished  to 
purchase  it  came  to  them.  This  was  told  to  the  Emperor  Charlemagne,  who 
had  them  brought  before  him,  and  asked  them  if  it  was  true  that  thej'  had 
knowledge  to  sell,  to  which  they  replied  that  they  had  it  by  the  grace  of 
God,  and  that  they  had  come  to  France  to  lend  it  a]id  to  teach  it  to  all  \\-ho 
wished  to  learn.  The  Emperor  asked  them  what  remuneration  they  expected, 
and  they  replied  that  they  asked  for  nothing  more  than  a  fitting  place  to 
teach  in,  and  subsistence  for  their  bodies.  When  the  Emperor  heard  this  he 
was  very  joyful,  and  retained  them  with  him  imtil  he  had  to  set  out  for  the 
war.  He  then  ordered  that  one  of  them,  Clement,  should  remain  in  Paris, 
that  children  of  all  ranks,  the  most  intelligent  that  could  be  foxmd,  should  be 
sent  to  him,  and  provided  him  with  proper  schools  to  teach  in,  and  ordered 
that  their  wants  should  be  ministered  to,  and  gave  them  great  pri-s-ileges, 
rights,  and  liberties  ;  and  therefrom  came  the  first  institution  of  the  body  of 
the  University  of  Paris,  which  Avas  at  Rome,  whither  it  had  been  transferred 
from  Athens." 

Such  are  the  facts  which  were  generally  taken  as  undeniable  for  more  than 
eight  centuries;  that  is  to  say,  until  the  learned    Etienne  Pasquier  (1564), 


rx/r/:'A\s7/7/:.\.  scz/oo/.s,  STcnf:\7'S.  3 

dofcndinp;  willi  ardour,  but  at  llic  same  time  witli  impartiality,  the  ancient 
])rivile<;es  of  tlie  University  of  Paris,  had  pi'oved,  in  concert  with  Loisel  the 
iidvooatc  and  Andre  Duchesne  the  historian,  that  these  glorious  traditions  had 
no  real  foundation.  It  must  be  said,  however,  that  such  distinguished  savants 
as  Du  Cange,  Mabillon,  and  Crevier  did  their  best  to  revive  the  legendary 
origin  of  the  University;  but,  all  questions  of  patriotism  apart,  it  became 
clear   that    the  academic  or    scholastic  establishments   of  Charlemagne,  like 


(Y^\^,<;>,Aiy\»\vVC^«^v  J  ^<yv*vo>vv^'^AV -X/ft >o 


^"^^<j<jS^^ 


Fig-  1  —  Grand  Initial,  designed  by  pen  (end  of  Fifteenth.  Century),  representing  Types  of 
Students,  in  one  of  the  Manuscript  Registers  of  the  German  Nation. 

University  Archives. 

manj'  other  creations  of  his  uniyersal  genius,  did  not  survive  the  indomitable 
mil  of  their  founder,  and  that  the  famous  schools  of  Paris  came  into  exist- 
ence and  developed  themsehes  under  the  immediate  influence  of  the  Church. 
The  etymology  of  the  word  unkersity  must  be  sought  in  the  Latin  word 
unirersitas,  which,  in  the  iliddle  Ages,  signified  a  reunion  or  category  of 
persons.  Thus,  in  the  acts  and  ordinances  published  in  the  name  of  the 
schools   of   Paris,  the  form    generally  employed  was,  "JSToverit   imiversitas 


UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOLS,   STUDEXTS. 


vestra  ; "  and  this  formula,  whicli  applied  to  all  tlae  protocols,  also  figured  at 
the  headuig  of  all  the  diplomas  issued  by  the  masters  and  addressed  to  the 
students.      It   is   easy  to  understand   that   the   word    unicerdtm,    gradually 


Fig.  2. — Seal  of  the  French  Nation 
(Fourteenth  Century). 


Fig.  4. — Seal  of  the  English  Nation 
(Fourteenth  Century). 


Fig.  3. — Counter-Seal  of  the  French  Nation 
(Foirrleenth  Centurj'). 


Fig.  5. — Counter-Seal  of  the  English  Nation 
(Fourteenth  Century). 


From  the  Sigillographic  Collection  in  the  National  Archives. 


assuming  a  special  or  limited  meaning,  was  finally  taken  to  mean  the 
Universit}'  or  whole  body  of  students,  then  the  establishment  itself  to  which 
these  students  belonged,  and,  lastly,  the  large  quarter  of  the  town  which  was 
almost  exclusi\clv  reserved  for  them  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Seine. 


r.\7i7:A'.s7/7£s,  sc //()()/. s.  \/r/)/::y/:s: 


Tho  uminls  of  tho  I^'niversity  of 
li:ick   iIkiu  to  tlu'  lectures  of  Peter 


Paris  cannot,  however,  be  traced  further 
Abelard,  that  great  and  popular  teacher 


Fig.  6. — Seal  of  the  Normandy  Nation 
(Fouiteenth  Century). 


Fig.  8.— Seal  of  the  Picardy  Nation 
(Fourteenth  Century). 


Fig.  7. — Counter-Seal  of  the  jSormandy 
Nation  (Fourteenth  Century). 


Fig.  9. — Counter-Seal  of  the  Picardy 
Nation  (Fourteenth  Century). 


From  the  Sigillographic  Collection  in  the  National  Archives. 

who  has  left  so  deep  an  impression  behind  him.  When  the  J'oung  and 
unfortunate  professor  came  to  Paris  for  the  first  time  (1057)  to  complete  his 
studies,  the  school  was  still,  so  to  speak,  beneath  the  wing  of  the  Church.     It 


umvERSiriES,  schools,  stcdexts. 


was  in  the  cloisters  of  Notre-Dame  that  those  gifted  masters,  William  of 
Champeaux  and  Anselm  of  Laon,  whose  lessons  he  at  first  received,  but 
both  of  whom  he  eventually  surpassed,  taught  their  pupils.  Fifty  years 
later  there  came  the  dawn  of  the  Universitj^,  for  Henry  II.,  King  of  England, 
proposed  to  submit  the  matters  in  dispute  between  himself  and  Thomas 
a  Becket  to  the  arbitrament  of  the  schools  of  the  various  nations  studj'ing  at 
Paris.    This  proof  of  esteem  for  the  scholars  of  Paris  says  a  great  deal  for 


c.    ,     .  ,  Fig.  11. — Counter-Seal  of  the 

r,g.  lO.-Seal  of  the  Rheims  University  (1568).  ^^-^^  University  (1568). 

From  the  Sigillographic  Collection  in  the  National  Archives. 

the  reputation  which  the  cosmopolitan  University  must  have  enjoyed  at  that 
period,  not  only  in  France,  but  throughout  Europe.  In  the  year  1200  a 
charter  from  Philip  Augustus,  dated  B(5thesy,  in  which  may  be  discovered 
almost  the  foundation  of  the  privileges  of  the  University,  shows  us  this 
institution  being-  carried  on  under  a  head  whose  immunity  from  the  inter- 
ference of  the  ordinary  law  is  solemnly  guaranteed,  together  with  that  of  aU 
its  members.  Lastly,  in  1-260,  the  University  body  stands  out  fully  organized, 
and  having  attained  its  complete  developuient. 


I W/ 1 'AA'.sy //A.s;    .V( 'llOOLS,   STL -JJEAJS. 


It  is  necessary  to  give  n  suimnary  sketch  of  this  ingenious  and  complex 
organization,  as  it  may  be  gathered  from  the  researches  of  Vallet  de  Viriville 
and  those  of  the  learned  M.  Charles  Jourdain,  the  last  historian  of  the 
University  of  Paris. 

From  the  very  beginning  a  natural  division  established  itself  between  the 
young  men  whom  the  fame  of  the  great  Parisian  school  attracted  thither 
from  all  parts  of  Christendom.    The  students  grouped  themselves  into  nations, 


Fig.  12.— Seal  of  the  Aix  University 
in  Provence  (Sixteenth  Centurj'). 


Fig.  13.— Great  Seal  of  the  Bourges  University 
(Fitteenth  Century). 


From  the  Sigillographic  Collection  in  the  National  Archives. 


and  these  nations  having  adopted,  hy  analogy  of  language,  interests,  and 
sympathy,  a  more  regular  form,  there  were  but  four  nations :  that  of  France 
(Figs.  2  and  3),  that  of  England  (Figs,  -i  and  5),  that  of  Normandy  (Figs.  6 
and  7),  and  that  of  Picardy  (Figs.  8  and  9).  The  French  nation  consisted  of 
live  tribes,  which  included  the  bishoprics  or  metropolitan  provinces  of  Paris, 
Sens,  Rheims,  and  Bourges  (Figs.  10  to  13),  and  all  the  south  of  Europe, 
so  that  a  Spaniard  or  an  Italian,  who  came  to  study  at  Paris,  was  comprised  in 


UNIVERSITIES,    SCHOOLS,   STUDENTS. 


the  French  nation.  The  English  nation,  ^vhich  was  subdivided  into  two 
tribes,  that  of  islanders  and  that  of  continentals,  embraced  all  the  northern 
and  eastern  parts  of   Europe  beyond  the  frontiers  of  France.      But  when 


Fig.  14. — A  School  of  itendicaut  Honks:  a  Birching, — JHniature  of  the  Mamiscript  Xo.  21,252 
in  the  Burgniidy  T,ihriiry,  Brussels  (Fifteenth  Century). 


the  two  peoples  separated  from  each  other  by  the  channel  became  violent 
antagonists,  and  the  name  of  England  had  got  to  be  an  object  of  general 
execration  for  Frenchmen,  the  nation  which  for  more  than  a  centurv  had 


rx/i7:'RS-/7VA's,  sr //()() r.s,  students. 


borne  it  became  the  Gennan  nation,  and  this  is  the  only  name  made  use  of 
in  tlio  ])ubh'c  documents  after  the  return  of  Charles  VII.  to  Paris  in  1437 
(Fig.  1).  The  Normandy  nation  had  only  one  tribe,  corresponding  with  the 
province  after  which  it  was  called ;  while  the  Picardy  nation,  on  the  other 
hand,  had  five,  representing  the  five  dioceses  of  Beauvais,  Noyon,  Amiens, 
Laon,  and  Terouaime,  otherwise  called  des  Morins. 

The  four  nations  together  constituted  at  first  the  Unirersifi/  of  Studies, 
but  afterwards  a  fresh  division  was  established,  according  to  the  order  of  the 
studies  of  each  nation,  and  the  Facidties  came  into  existence.  From  that 
time  forward,  the  distinction  of  nations  only  existed  iu  the  Faculty  of  Arts, 
a  denomination  which  comprised  grammar,  philosophy,  and  the  humanities 
as  they  were  taught  in  the  schools.  Looked  at  from  another  point  of  view, 
the  liberal  arts,  so  called,  comprised  the  trimum,  that  is  to  say,  grammar, 
rhetoric,  and  dialectics ;  and  the  quadrivium,  that  is  to  say,  arithmetic, 
geographj%  music,  and  astronomy. 

When  we  consider  the  position  held  by  the  Church  ia  society  during  the 
Middle  Ages,  it  is  not  surprising  that  religious  instruction  should  have  been 
taken  in  hand  at  once,  and  have  become  the  object  of  a  special  faculty,  that 
of  Theology.  When,  some  time  later,  the  mendicant  orders  were  founded 
by  St.  Dominic  and  St.  Francois,  the  ancient  masters  of  theology  and  those  of 
the  Faculty  of  Arts  refused  at  first  to  have  anything  to  do  with  the  new-comers ; 
but  they  were  compelled  to  do  so  by  St.  Louis  and  Pope  Alexander  IV.,  and 
the  useful  co-operation  of  the  allies  whom  it  had  at  first  repelled  soon  turned 
to  the  profit  and  to  the  glory  of  the  Faculty  of  Theology  (Fig.  14). 

In  1151  a  clerk  from  Bologna,  called  Gratian,  ha^ang  united  under  the 
title  of  Decree  the  ancient  and  recent  decisions  of  the  ecclesiastical  authorities, 
which  comprised  the  whole  canonical  jurisprudence,  Pope  Eugene  III. 
gave  his  approval  to  this  compilation,  and  ordered  it  to  be  taught  throughout 
Christendom.  Such  was  the  origin  of  the  Facidty  of  the  Decree,  which  was 
at  first  but  a  branch  of  the  Faculty  of  Theology.  At  about  the  same  period 
the  Pandects  of  the  Emperor  Justinianus,  discovered  at  Amalfi,  in  Calabria, 
added  a  very  valuable  source  of  documents  to  the  study  of  law,  which  had 
hitherto  possessed  no  other  bases  than  the  Theodosian  Code,  the  barbarous 
laws  and  "  capitularies  "  of  the  Kings  of  France.  The  labours  of  the  Juris- 
consults everywhere  received  a  new  impetus,  and  especially  in  the  University 
of  Paris ;   but   notwithstanding'  it  was  not  until  much  later   that  civil  law 


UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOLS,   STUDENTS. 


came  to  rank  beside  canon  law.  Several  popes,  considering  profane  or 
secular  jurisprudence  as  useless,  and  even  opposed  to  ecclesiastical  law,  issued 
bulls  in  whicb  students  were  enjoined  to  learn  only  canon  law. 

It  is  towards  tbe  close  of  the  tweKtb  centurj^  also,  that  the  study  of 
medicine  appears  to  have  begun  in  the  lay  schools  of  Paris.  Up  to  that 
period  the  clerks,  and  especially  the  clergy,  who  alone  possessed  sufficient 
learning  to  pursue  the  study  of  medicine,  had  been  the  sole  masters  of  the 
art;    but   in  course    of   time   ecclesiastical   discipline  hampered   and  even 


Fig.  15. — Seal  of  the  four  Nations  or  Faculty  of  Arts  (Sixteenth  Century). 
Paris  National  Library.    The  Cabinet  of  Medals. 


put  a  ban  upon  the  study  of  it,  as  it  had  done  upon  that  of  civil  law.  It 
was,  therefore,  onlj'  after  great  difficulties  that  a  Faculty  of  Medicine  was 
founded  at  the  University.  It  is  true  that  medicine — a  science  of  facts  and 
observations — could  not  well  make  much  progress  amidst  the  prejudices  of 
every  kmd,  and  imder  the  blind  authority  of  the  categories,  the  fonnalities, 
and  the  empiric  methods  which  so  long  clung  to  the  University  teaching. 
The  Paris  Faculty  of  Medicine  could  not,  in  these  circimistances,  hope  to 
dethrone  the  famous  schools  of  Salerno  and  Montpellier,  which  preserved  the 
deposit  of  the  medical  knowledge  of  antiquitj'  as  it  had  been  transmitted  to  the 


iwivERsrnES,  schools,  studexts. 


Middle  Ages  by  the  Greeks  and  the  Arabs.  The  three  new  faculties  created 
at  the  Fniversity  continued  to  be  subordinate,  notwithstanding  their  gradual 
(lovelopnicnt.  to  the  Faculty  of  Arts  (Fig.  15)  ;  the  body  of  the  four  nations, 
of  whicli  this  last-mentioned  faculty  consisted,  assured  it  a  clear  prepon- 
derance, with  the  maintenance  of  certain  essential  prerogatives.  Thus  each 
nation  elected  a  proctor,  and  each  faculty  a  dean.      The  mode  of  election 


Fig.  16. — Rector  and  Doctor  of  the  University  of  Paris. — After  a  ^Miniature  of  the  "  Cite  de 
Dieu  "  (Fifteenth  Centurj').      Manuscript  of  the  Paris  National  Library. 


for  the  proctors  and  their  term  of  office  varied,  however,  with  different 
nations.  The  Faculty  of  Arts  had  four  proctors  (Fig.  15).  The  Faculty 
of  Theology,  besides  its  dean,  who  was  the  senior  doctor,  chose  every  other 
j^ear  a  syndic,  whose  business  it  was  to  administer  the  private  business  of  the 
company.  The  Decree  Faculty  had  only  a  dean  selected  by  seniority  in  the 
grade  of  doctor,  and  the  Facultj'  of  Medicine  had  a  dean  elected  every  year 


univjsjRsities,  schools,  students. 


from  amongst  the  doctors  in  practice.  Deans  and  proctors,  to  the  nionber 
of  seven,  formed  the  higher  tribvmal  of  the  University.  The  Faculty  of 
Arts  had,  therefore,  a  clear  majority  of  its  o-n-n  ujDon  this  tribunal ;  it  had, 
moreover,  assiuned  for  itself  the  exclusive  right  of  nominating  the  rector 
or  supreme  head  of  the  University,  and  he  was  bound  to  be  a  member  of  the 
faculty  (Fig.  16).  The  Faculty  of  Arts  also  had  the  care  of  the  archives, 
the  management  of  the  Pre-aux-Clercs,  and  the  nomination  or  presentation 
of  all  the  University  officials  not  chosen  by  vote. 

Originally  the  elected  rector  did  not  hold  office  for  more  than  six  weeks, 


Fig.  17.— Master  Jean  de  Vandeuil,  Proctor  of  the  Picardy  Nation  (Fifteenth  Centurj-). 
Miniature  of  the  Manuscript  Register,  No.  11  (1476—83).     University  Archives. 


but  in  the  thirteenth  century  the  period  was  extended  to  three  months,  and 
towards  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century  the  post  came  to  be  held  in  fact,  if 
not  in  right,  for  a  twelvemonth.  The  proctors  of  the  nations  (Fig.  17)  were 
at  first  invested  with  the  right  of  choosing  the  rector,  but  so  many  scandals 
were  caused  in  this  connection  that  the  nations  nominated  four  special 
electors,  who,  before  proceeding  to  a  selection,  swore  to  make  a  choice  honour- 
able and  useful  to  the  University. 

The  rector,  whose  office  conferred  upon  him  high  prerogatives,  exercised 
a  sovereign  jurisdiction  over  aU  the  schools,  and  recognised  no  authority  as 


UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOLS,  STUDENTS. 


13 


superior  to  his  own  within  the  precincts  of  the  University.  Often  suni- 
luonod  to  flic  King's  Council,  he  took  rank  with  the  Bishop  of  Paris  and 
w  ilh  the  rmliament  at  all  puliHc  ceremonials.       He  gave  to  all  the  students, 


Fig.  18. — Swiss  Courier. — After  a  Stutue  preserved  in  the  Town  Hall  at  Bale 
(Fifteenth  Century). 


and  also  to  the  tutors,  the  letters  or  diplomas  which  conferred  upon  them^ 
the  privileges  of  their  grade,  and  he  received  from  them  their  oath  of  passive 
obedience,  "no    matter   to  what  dignity  they  might  attain" — an  oath  the 


H 


UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOLS,   STUDENTS. 


breaking  of  which  entailed  very  serious  consequences.  He  appointed  to  all 
the  offices  of  the  University ;  his  accession  to,  and  his  resignation  of,  the 
post  were  celebrated  by  a  procession,  to  which  he  invited,  in  addition  to  all 
the  University  officials,  the  religious  communities  residing  within  his  juris- 
diction. In  1412,  according  to  the  chronicler  Jouvenel  des  Ursins,  when 
there  was  a  solemn  procession  from  the  University  to  the  Abbej'  of  St.  Denis 
to  pray  that  war  might  be  a\'erted,  the  cortege  was  so  long  that  the  head  of 


Fig.  19. — University  Beadle. — Jean  Lequeu.x,  Messenger  of  Guise  en  Thieraohe,  Diocese  of  Laon. 
Miniature  of  the  Manuscript  Register,  No.  11  (1476—83).    University  Archives. 


the  procession  entered  St.  Denis,  while  the  rector  was  still  at  the  Mathurins 
Monaster}',  ia  the  Rue  St.  Jacques. 

Next  to  the  rector  came  the  sjTidic,  also  caMei  2^1'octor,  promoter,  or  procu- 
rafor-fiscal,  and  it  was  he  who  was  in  reality  the  general  manager  of  the 
Universit}%  and  who  could  alone,  in  certain  circumstances,  coimterbalance  the 
preponderance  of  the  rector. 

The  treasurer  had  the  control  of  the  revenue  and  expenditure  of  the 
University.      The  expenses  were  large,  and  the  revenues  comprised,  apart 


i\\IVi:RSITI£S,   SCJ/OOLS,   STCDJlM'S. 


from  the  fee  paid  by  all  the  students,  a  multiplicity  of  legacies  and  charitable 
foundations,  the  annual  produce  of  the  Pre-aux-Clcrcs  and  that  of  the  office 
of  messenger. 

The  registrar,  secretarj',  or  scribe,  took  notes  or  read  documents  at  the 
meetings  of  the  TJniversity,  and  preserved  in  the  archives  the  registers,  of 
which  only  a  few  are  still  extant. 

The  name  of  grand  iiwssager  was  given  to  certain  of  the  principal 
burghers  of  Paris  who,  established  in  the  capital,  acted  as  correspondents  for 
the  scholars  from  the  different  provinces  of  France  and  the  various  countries 
of  Europe.  Accredited  by  the  scholars'  familie  ,  and  sworn  servants  of  the 
University,  they  were  exempted  from  the  service  of  the  urban  guard,  and 
enjoyed  other  immvmities.  They  were  bound  to  supply  the  students, 
under  certain  securities,  with  the  money  which  they  might  require.  The 
nimiber  of  these  messengers  was  limited  to  one  for  each  diocese.  They  had 
imder  their  orders  a  number,  varj'^ing  according  to  circumstances,  of  sub- 
messengers,  or  mere  postmen,  who  were  perpetually  coming  and  going  to 
and  from  Paris  with  letters  and  parcels  for  the  students  and  their  rela- 
tives. This  organization  may  be  looked  upon  as  the  origin  of  the  Letter- 
post  and  the  Messageries,  which  have  since  been  raised  to  the  rank  of  public 
services — the  Post  by  Louis  XI.,  the  Messageries  by  Louis  XIV.  (Figs.  18 
and  19). 

The  University  had,  in  addition,  its  beadles,  also  called  sergeants,  massiers, 
or  apparitors,  to  the  number  of  fourteen,  each  nation  and  each  faculty 
appointing  two,  an  upper  and  an  under  one.  The  rector  was  generally 
preceded  by  the  two  beadles  of  the  nation  to  which  he  belonged.  These 
functionaries,  whose  duties  at  first  were  purely  ceremonial,  afterwards  were 
emploj^ed  in  the  transcribing  of  public  documents,  and  so  came  to  be  looked 
upon  as  half-copyists,  half -literary  persons  (Fig.  19). 

To  these  officials,  of  high  and  low  degree,  must  be  added  the  two  chan- 
cellors, attached  to  the  churches  of  Notre-Dame  and  St.  Genevieve,  the  two 
conservators  of  the  privileges  of  the  University.  One  of  these,  the  royal 
conservator,  was  the  provost  of  Paris,  who,  upon  his  appointment,  took  an 
oath  that  he  would  respect  and  maintain  the  rights  of  the  University,  while 
the  second,  or  apostolic  conservator,  was  selected  from  amongst  the  three 
Bishops  of  Meaux,  Beauvais,  and  Senlis. 

The  titles  borne  by  the  superior  and  subordinate  officers  of  the  University 


,6  UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOLS,   STUDENTS. 


merely  formed  part  of  their  temporary  functions.  These  titles  were  quite 
distinct  and  independent  of  the  scholastic  titles,  grades,  or  degrees,  which 
were  only  to  be  acquired  by  examination.  Previously  to  the  thirteenth 
century,  it  is  certain  that  there  were  only  two  degrees  in  the  University  body  : 
that  of  the  students  and  that  of  the  masters.  Anybody  who  had  the  amount  of 
knowledge  or  hardihood  to  face  an  audience  could  open  a  school,  and  it  is  to 
be  remarked  that  daring  often  had  its  reward.  Thus  Abelard  was  often 
taunted  with  having  dubbed  himseK  of  his  own  authority  master  of  theology. 

Immediately  after  the  foundation  of  the  University  there  were  three 
degrees  which  students  had  to  pass  in  turn.  The  first,  that  of  bachelor, 
derived  its  name  indirectly,  according  to  several  theologists,  from  the  Latin 
word  hacuhon  (rod,  and  so,  by  extension,  any  weapon  held  ia  the  hand),  out 
of  allusion  to  the  different  exercises  which  were  the  prelude  to  the  military 
education  of  the  young  nobility.  The  first  bachelors  were  the  Bachelors  of 
Arts.  After  having  well  studied  his  trivium,  the  candidate  for  the  bacca- 
laureat  underwent  an  examination,  and  had  to  enter  into  arguments  upon 
grammar,  rhetoric,  and  dialectics.  These  arguments — disputes  they  were 
called — took  place  at  Christmas  and  during  Lent.  The  candidate,  if  he 
came  well  out  of  them,  obtained  the  treble  privilege,  1st.  of  wearing  the 
roimd  hat,  a  mark  of  his  rank ;  2nd.  of  being  present  at  the  masses  of  the 
nations ;  3rd.  of  commenciag  in  the  arts,  that  is  to  say,  of  teaching  ia  his 
turn,  imder  the  direction  and  superiatendence  of  a  master.  The  bachelor, 
who  was  at  the  same  time  both  student  and  teacher,  explained  Aristotle's 
treatises  on  logic,  natural  philosophy,  metaphysics,  and  moral  philosophy ; 
and  when  he  believed  that  he  had  mastered  all  these  subjects,  which  now 
seem  so  far  behind  us,  he  applied  to  the  ecclesiastical  authorities  for  a  license. 
The  right  of  conferring  this  second  University  degree  was  at  first  shared  by 
the  Bishop  of  Paris  and  the  Abbot  of  St.  Genevieve,  as  spiritual  sovereigns 
of  the  scholastic  territory  ;  but  afterwards  it  was  accorded  exclusively  to  the 
Chancellor  of  Notre-Dame,  as  delegate  of  the  bishop. 

The  licentiate,  as  soon  as  he  had  been  approved  of  by  the  Church,  again 
came  up  before  the  masters  of  the  Faculty  of  Arts,  to  obtain  from  them  the 
third  degree,  consisting  of  the  cap  and  other  insignia  of  the  order,  which 
gave  him  the  title  of  Master  of  Arts. 

In  the  higher  faculties,  so  called  because  the  Faculty  of  Arts  served, 
in  a  manner,  as  un  introduction  to  the  Faculties  of  Theolosv,  Decree,  and 


I \y/ 1 'A'A'.sv //A-.v,  sciiooi. s.  sri dexis. 


>7 


Medicine,  tlie  procedure  was  mucli  the  same,  excepting  tliat  the  third  grade 
or  degree,  which  was  only  conferred  after  the  candidate  had  sustained  a  long 


ri.    a 
I   I 


Q  - 


O     *» 

o    o 


and  difficult  thesis  in  public,  was  more  specially  accompanied  by  the  title  of 
dodor  (Fig.  20). 

The  University  of  Paris,  like  all  the  institutions  destined  to  last  and  to 


1 8  UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOIS,   STUDEN^TS. 


succeed,  -was  placed  beneath  the  fostering  protection  of  the  Church  and  the 
Crown.  Thus  the  generous  assistance  of  the  temporal  power  and  the 
tutelary  influence  of  the  spiritual  jjower  never  failed  it.  The  Holy  See 
loved  and  encouraged  in  the  Universitj^  the  eloquent  voice  of  France,  which, 
since  the  reign  of  Clovis,  converted  by  St.  Clotilde,  had  placed  at  the  service 
of  the  Catholic  faith  all  the  forces  and  influence  of  her  national  genius  and 
character.  The  Kings  of  France  were  equally  well  disposed  towards 
the  University,  which  was,  for  the  capital  of  their  kingdom,  a  source  of 
wealth  and  of  honour,  a  reserve  of  eminent  statesmen  for  their  council, 
a  nursery  of  clever  and  distinguished  youths  for  their  dijDlomacy.  Thus 
sovereigns,  spiritual  and  temporal,  each  in  their  own  way,  vied  in  showering 
favours  upon  this  fruitful  and  powerful  institution,  which,  nevertheless, 
showed  itself,  in  certain  grave  circumstances,  the  reverse  of  grateful  for  the 
benefits  heaped  upon  it  by  its  august  protectors. 

The  history  of  Paris  teems  with  episodes,  some  curioiis,  and  only  too 
many  tragic,  which  denote  the  turbulent  and  seditious  tendencies  of  the 
University  students.  These  headstrong  and  undisciplined  youths  took  advan-  . 
tage  of  the  sort  of  in-violability  which  the}^  owed  to  the  blind  and  generous 
affection  of  their  religious  and  lay  patrons  to  gratify  their  love  of  dis- 
order. The  University  itself  set  the  students  an  example  of  disobedience 
when  the  smallest  of  its  prerogatives  was  called  in  question.  The  Univer- 
sity possessed  three  means  of  protesting  against,  or,  as  its  historian,  Egasse 
du  Boulay,  puts  it,  of  remedying  any  infraction  of  its  privileges.  If  the 
violation  was  committed  by  the  secular  power,  it  referred  the  matter  at  once 
to  the  King,  as  its  jurisdiction  emanated  direct  from  the  Crown.  If  the 
infraction  was  committed  by  the  ecclesiastical  authority,  the  University  sent 
to  Rome  an  embassy,  consisting  of  its  own  doctors,  who  often  found  in  the 
successor  of  St.  Peter  a  former  comrade,  whose  associations  inclined  him  in 
favour  of  a  University  to  which,  as  a  graduate,  he  had  formerly  taken  an 
oath  of  fidelity.  If  the  Pope  refused  to  comply  with  the  request  addi-essed 
to  him  by  the  University,  the  latter  appealed  to  the  universal  Church  and  to 
the  future  council.  Its  last  resource  was  what  may  be  caUed  a  University 
excommunication.  This  meant  a  general  stoppage  of  all  studies  and  lectures. 
The  masters  and  doctors  in  theology  abstained  from  preaching  in  the 
churches.  The  inteUectual,  moral,  and  religious  life  of  the  capital  was  sus- 
pended.     If  the  crisis  lasted,  the  doctors,  regents,  and  bachelors  of  the  four 


rxiyi:R^/T/ES,  schools,  students. 


'9 


faculties  chiscd  tlicir  scliools,  and  threatened  to  emigrate  in  a  body,  taking 
M-ith  them  a  whole  ai-my  of  ushers  and  clients,  who  formed  neaily  a  third  of 
the  population  of  Paris.  No  power  existed  in  the  thirteenth  century  capable 
of  holding  out  long  against  this  silent  and  inflexible  protest. 

Thus,  ni  rj'21,  the  University,  having  to  complain  of  some  undue  exer- 
cise of  authority  by  the  Bishop  of  Paris,  closed  its  schools  for  six  months. 
In  similar  circmnstances,  four  years  later,  the  Papal  Legate  was  assailed  in 
his  own  house  by  a  band  of  armed  students,  who  wounded  several  of  his 
retinue,  and  would  have  maltreated  him  if  he  had  not  avoided  capture.       At 


Fig.  21.— St.  Louis,  King  of  France,  going  to  Matins  at  the  Cordeliers  Church,  Paris,  "uno- 
estudiant  par  mesprison  lui  tumba  son  orinal  sur  son  chief."  The  King,  instead  of  punish- 
ing the  student,  gave  him  the  prebendary  of  St.  Quentin,  en  Vermandois,  "because  he  was 
in  the  habit  of  getting  up  at  this  hour  to  stud}-."-Miniature  of  Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth 
Century.     Burgundy  Librarj',  Brussels. 

the  close  of  the  Carnival  of  1228,  Queen  Blanche,  who  was  Eegent  during" 
the  minority  of  her  son,  Louis  IX.,  inflicted  severe  punishment  upon  the 
students  who,  under  the  influence  of  drint,  had  committed  great  disorder  and 
had  shed  blood  in  the  Faubourg  of  St.  Marcel.  The  University,  finding 
the  remonstrances  which  it  in  consequence  addressed  to  the  King  of  no 
effect,  dismissed  the  students  and  masters  to  their  respective  homes,  left  the 
capital  for  two  years  under  an  interdict,  and  only   consented  to  resume  the 


UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOLS,   STUDENTS. 


normal  course  of  teaching  after  liaving  wrung  from  tlie  Crown  the  repara- 
tion which  it  had  demanded  at  first  (Fig.  21). 

It  must,  however,  be  admitted  that  the  University  could  only  earn  such 
victories  as  these  at  the  cost  of  its  own  privileges,  and  with  much  injury  to 
itself  ;  for  the  masters,  scattered  here  and  there  during  the  time  that  the 
schools  were  closed,  often  co-operated  in  the  foundation  of  rural  universities 
at  the  places  where  they  had  taken  up  a  temporary  residence,  and  settled 
there  permanently.  Moreover,  these  periods  of  disturbance  and  strife  were 
taken  advantage  of  by  other  teaching  bodies,  who  lost  no  time  in  opening 
schools,  and  in  creating  chairs,  and  who  often  obtained  through  the  spiritual 
or  temporal  authority  the  faA^our  of  being  admitted,  either  by  a  bull  or  an 
ordinance,  into  the  University  itself.  It  was  in  this  way  that  in  1257  the 
Dominicans,  supported  by  Louis  IX.,  who  had  been  their  pupil,  and  bj^  the 
popes,  who  had  been  their  comrades,  forced  their  way  through  the  breach 
into  the  University  of  Paris,  and  this  in  spite  of  the  distrust  and  animosity 
which  their  doctrines  excited.  It  was  in  the  same  way  that  the  University 
was  compelled  to  open  its  ranks  to,  and  confer  the  doctor's  cap  upon,  Brother 
Thomas  Aquinas  and  Brother  Bonaventura,  who  were  the  lights  of  the  philo- 
sophic schools,  but  who  remained  far  more  attached,  the  one  to  the  Order  of 
St.  Dominic,  the  other  to  that  of  St.  Francis,  than  to  the  Faculty  of 
Theology.  Moreover,  the  sort  of  moral  and  political  omnipotence  acquired 
by  the  University  in  the  Middle  Ages  was  not  the  same  at  every  epoch, 
and  it  is  easy  to  recognise  in  the  course  of  its  history  different  phases,  in  the 
process  of  which  its  character  and  tendencies  underwent  various  modifications. 
In  the  first  period  the  Paris  schools  were  but  the  emanation  of  the  Church, 
which  was  graduall}^  becoming  secularised.  As  the  institution  became  more 
and  more  stable,  it  got  to  be  more  in  harmonj^  with  other  establishments.  In 
the  year  1200  Philip  Augustus  issued  a  charter,  uniting  the  Universitj^  into 
one  body,  and  endowed  the  multitude  of  students  gathered  together  from  all 
parts  of  the  world  with  very  valuable  privileges.  From  this  laborious  and 
intellectual  mass  of  students  Avere  recruited  several  popes  and  cardinals,  a 
great  many  archbishops  or  bishops,  and  a  vast  number  of  men  of  the 
highest  ability  in  other  professions  throughout  the  thirteenth  century.  Up 
to  the  middle  of  the  fourteenth  century  the  authority  and  importance  of  the 
University  continued  to  increase.  From  1297  to  1304  it  was  of  material 
aid  to  Philippe  le  Bel  in  his  struggle  ^^•ith  Pope  Boniface  VIII.       In  1316, 


Venm{otcviei 


^v 


GEORGES  CHASTELAIN  OFFERING  HIS  BOOK  TO  CHARLES,  DUKE  OF  BURAGUNDY. 

Miniature  from  the  Instruction  d'un  Jeune  prince,  by  G.  Chastelain.  M.S.  of  the  xv""  century,  executed  by  the  pain- 
ters of  the  Court  of  Burgundy;  n°  33  S.  A.  F.  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


UXIVERSITIES,   SCHOOLS,   STUDENTS. 


at  the  death  of  Loiiis  X.,  and  in  1328,  at  the  death  of  Charles  IV.,  its  vote 
went  a  long  way  towards  securing  the  triumph  of  the  Salic  law,  and  pre- 
venting the  government  of  France  from  falling  into  the  hands  of  an  English 
prince.  Councillor  of  the  kings,  instructor  of  the  people,  the  University — 
the  j)erma)ient  Council  of  the  Gauls — pursued  its  high  mission  with  great 
credit,  and  this  was  the  period  when  it  reached  the  apogee  of  its  splendour. 
Then  it  was  that  all  its  members,  masters  and  pupils  alike,  were  recognised 
as  inviolable,  exempt  from  all  tolls,  subsidies,  imposts,  and  military  service  of 
every  kind.  Then  it  was  that,  to  complete  the  measure  of  its  honours, 
Charles  V.  conferred  upon  the  University  the  proud  title,  Avhich  it  never  let 
drop,  of  Eldest  Daughter  of  the  Kings. 

But  the  period  of  its  decadence  was  soon  about  to  begin.  Venality, 
sophistrj%  and  party  spirit  took  possession  of  its  leaders.  In  1380  the  gold 
of  the  house  of  Burgundy  was  the  stipend  of  several  political  creatures  in 
the  ranks  of  the  doctors  in  theology.  In  1407  the  Duke  of  Orleans, 
brother  of  the  King,  was  waylaid  and  murdered,  and  Master  Jean  Petit  took 
up  the  murderers'  part  in  the  pulpit,  and  justified  political  assassination. 
Then  came  the  English,  to  whose  yoke  part  of  the  University  submitted  with 
so  much  cowardice  as  to  provoke,  with  a  sort  of  complacent  fanaticism, 
the  iniquitous  sentence  which  condemned  the  heroic  Joan  of  Arc  to  the 
stake.  Reprisals  and  punishment  were  not  long  in  overtaking  them.  King 
Charles  VII.  inflicted  the  first  blow  upon  this  ancient  institution,  which  his 
royal  predecessors  had  protected,  and  it  almost  seems  as  if  he  punished  the 
University  for  not  having  sustained  its  ancient  reputation  for  patriotism  and 
good  sense.  Not  only  did  he  recognise  and  confirm  the  existence  of  several 
new  universities  in  the  provinces  (Figs.  10 — 13),  but,  rejecting  the  demand 
of  the  Paris  University,  which  insisted  that  its  only  tribunal  should  be  the 
King's  Council,  ordered  its  disputes  to  be  judged  by  the  Parliament  (1445). 
Fifty-five  years  later,  Louis  XII.,  taking  into  consideration  the  wishes  of 
the  States- General  convoked  during  the  reign  of  Charles  VIII.,  curtailed 
many  of  the  privileges  of  the  University ;  and,  by  his  edict  of  August 
3]st,  1498,  brought  it  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the  common  law.  The 
University  attempted  to  resist,  and,  as  in  its  palmy  days,  to  resort  to  its 
traditional  practices.  The  rector  ordered  the  schools  to  be  closed,  and  no 
sermons  to  be  preached  in  the  churches ;  but  the  King,  absent  from  the 
capital,  received  his  eldent  daughter  with  a  bad  grace.       Upon   his  return, 


UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOLS,    STUDENTS. 


escorted  by  his  military  houseliold,  all  fully  armed,  he  rode  through  the 
University  quarter  of  the  city  without  condescending  to  draw  bridle  to 
hear  the  harangue  of  the  rector,  who  had  come  out  to  meet  him,  followed  by 
all  the  officers  and  students.  The  University  gave  way,  and  this  was  her 
last  attempt  to  maintain  by  force  her  feudal  prerogatives. 

The  University  ceased  from  this  time  to  be  the  centre  of  intellectual 
domination.  Printing  was  invented  about  this  time,  and  diffused  the 
instruments  of  study  and  knowledge  in  all  directions.  The  Reformation 
proclaimed  the  liberty  of  self-examination,  and  the  free  schools  established 
under  the  new  religious  doctrines  throu^ghout  Europe  obtained  the  pre- 
ference. Paris  ceased  to  be  the  exclusive  source  of  science,  but  Rome 
remained  the  sole  focus  of  divine  light.  The  University  lost  its  unity  and 
its  strength  when  it  ceased  to  lean  exclusively  for  support  upon  the  Church 
and  the  CroAvn. 

Having  thus  rapidly  reviewed  the  vicissitudes  which  the  University 
underwent  up  to  the  sixteenth  century,  it  becomes  necessary  to  notice  the 
various  scholastic  establishments  which,  affiliated  to  it,  or  independent  of  it 
altogether,  constituted  the  totality  of  the  educational  sj^stem  in  schools 
during  the  Middle  Ages. 

When  Abelard  came  to  Paris  in  1107  he  found  two  masters  of  great 
reputation,  who  gave  their  lessons  in  the  Bishop's  house,  by  the  side  of  the 
cathedral.  It  was  not  far  from  this  house,  and  at  the  very  entrance  to  the 
cloisters  of  Notre-Dame,  where  Canon  Fulbert  and  his  pupil  Heloise  lived, 
that  Abelard  first  opened  his  school.  A  few  years  later,  William  of  Cham- 
peaux  resigned  his  archdeaconship,  and  withdrew  to  the  priory  of  St.  Victor, 
upon  the  left  bank  of  the  Seine,  outside  the  walls  of  the  city,  in  order  to 
found  a  new  school  there.  Abelard,  exj)elled  from  the  school  which  he 
occupied  in  the  citj^,  near  the  episcopal  residence,  took  refuge  upon  Mount 
St.  Genevieve,  whither  he  was  followed  by  his  pupils.  Notwithstanding, 
the  cathedral  schools  continuing  to  increase,  and  being  short  of  room  within 
the  enclosure  of  the  city,  were  divided  into  two  parts.  The  one,  consisting 
of  artiens  (students  of  Arts),  crossed  the  bridge,  and  took  up  their  quarters 
close  to  the  Church  of  St.  Julian  the  Poor,  which  was  a  branch  of  the 
Metropolitan  Cathedral  (Fig.  22).  The  theologians  retained  their  residence 
under  the  walls  of  Notre-Dame.  It  was  in  this  way  that  the  elements 
which  a  century  later  constituted  the  University  began  to  collect.      In  a 


UmVERSITIES,   SCHOOLS,   STl'DEXTS. 


23 


short    time    the  nations  erected    four  large  rooms  or  schools,   close  to    the 
Church   of  St.   Julian  tlie  Poor,   in  the  Eue  Fouarre,   or  Feurre,   so  called 


Fig.  22.— Bas-relipf  of  the  Principal  Altar  in  the  Clnirrh  ui  ,St.  Julian  tho  Poor  (Twelfth- C'uiitury 
Work). — Two  Scholars  upon  their  Knees  on  each  side  of  the  Crucifi.\. 

because  the  students  had  to  sit  upon  straw   (fouarre),  grouped  around  the 
chair  occupied  by  the  master.       Independently  of  these  great  schools,  which 


24 


UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOLS,  STUDENTS. 


represented  a  sort  of  general  scIlooI,  any  one  wlio  had  obtained  a  license  hired 
a  room,  and  invited  the  public  to  take  lessons  from  him.  Thus  the  Univer- 
sity quarter,  which  was  afterwards  called  the  "Latin  quarter,"  became 
peopled  with  masters  and  schools.  It  soon  became  necessary  to  erect  hotels 
or  private  dwellings  to  take  in  the  students,  who  were  at  once  eager  to 
learn,  and  very  scantily  provided  with  money  (Fig.  23).  This  was  the 
orio^in  of  the  Paris  colleges,  under  which  name  were  founded,  in  the  early 
days  of  the  University,  various  establishments,  in  which  aspirants  for  reli- 
gious orders  studied  at  the  expense  of  the  monastic  orders  to  which  they 


Fig.  23.— Interior  of  a  School.— After  a  Design  of  the  Sixteenth  Century.— National  Library. 
Cabinet  of  Designs  (Old  Masters)  on  Wood. 

belonged.  Private  charity  soon  created  colleges  of  a  similar  kind  for 
laymen,  veritable  houses  of  refuge,  in  which  the  students  were  provided, 
to  use  the  apposite  expression  of  one  founder,  with  bread  for  the  body  and 
the  mind.  This  double  character  of  liberality  and  devotion  is  a  prominent 
feature  in  the  primitive  constitution  of  these  establishments,  which  were 
founded  and  endowed  by  pious  persons  with  the  view  of  assisting  the  educa- 
tion of  the  poor.  Such  were,  in  the  thirteenth  century,  the  Colleges  of  the 
Bons  Enfants  St.  Honore  (1208),  and  of  the  Bons  Enfants  St.  Victor  (1248), 
the  Colleges  of  St.  Catherine  du  Valdes  Ecoliers  (1229),  and  of  Premontre 


UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOLS,   STUDENTS.  25 


(1252),  the  Treasurer's  College  (1268),  and,  oldest  of  all,  the  College  of  the 
Eighteen,  which  dates  from  the  first  half  of  the  twelfth  century. 

Nothing,  however,  can  be  imagined  more  pitiable  and  more  deservino-  of 
sympathy  than  these  colleges  of  the  Middle  Ages,  in  which,  under  the 
control  of  a  regent  or  imncipaJ,  a  few  masters,  as  poor  as  their  scholars, 
devoted  themselves  to  the  education  of  a  dozen  or  so  of  students,  who  shared 
with  them  their  scanty  pittance.  With  scarcely  enough  money  to  keep 
body  and  soul  together,  they  were  compelled  to  do  some  menial  work,  or  else 
to  appeal  to  public  charity.  In  the  fourteenth  century,  as  we  learn  from 
the  ditty  called  "  Crieries  de  Paris,"  the  scholars  of  the  College  of  the  Eons 
Enfants,  in  the  Rue  St.  Honore,  wandered  about  the  streets,  and,  holding  out 
their  hands  to  the  jsassers-by,  exclaimed — 

"  Les  Bons  Enfants  orrez  (hear)  crier : 
Bu  pain  !...." 

Some  few  colleges  were  better  off  than  this  woe-stricken  house,  for,  being 
endowed  with  fixed  revenues  by  their  foimders,  encouraged  and  enriched  by 
the  clergy  and  the  great,  they  prospered  and  continued  in  existence  until 
the  Revolution. 

The  one  which  long  remained  the  most  famous  of  all,  the  Sorbonne, 
owed  its  name  and  its  origin  to  the  liberality  of  the  learned  Robert  Sorbon, 
who,  after  having  undergone  privations  of  every  kind  in  his  youth,  became 
the  chaplain  and  confessor  of  Louis  IX.  By  letters  patent  in  1250  the 
saintly  King,  himself  contributing  to  this  foundation,  granted  for  the  use  of 
the  future  college  a  house  and  stables  adjoining,  situated  in  the  Rue  Coupe- 
Gueule,  in  front  of  the  ruins  of  the  palace  of  the  Thermtr,  or  of  the  Ca'sars. 
This  college  was  specially  destined  for  a  certain  number  of  needy  youths,  who, 
after  having  taken  their  arts  degree,  gave  themselves  up  to  the  study  of  sacred 
lore.  It  is  needless  to  remind  our  readers  that  the  Sorbonne,  rebuilt,  enlarged, 
and  richly  endowed  by  Cardinal  Richelieu,  who  bequeathed  to  it  a  part  of  his 
property,  became  at  last  the  seat  of  the  Faculty  of  Theology. 

Created  upon  the  model  of  Robert  Sorbon's  foundation,  a  great  many 
colleges,  instituted  by  men  of  mark  either  in  the  Church  or  in  society,  were 
erected  as  if  by  magic— no  less  than  sixty  were  built  between  1137  and  1360 
—in  all  i^arts  of  the  University  quarter,  which  extended  in  the  shape  of  an 
amphitheatre  from  the  sunmiit  of  Mount  Genevieve  down  to  the  Seine,  and 

£ 


26  UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOIS,   STUDENTS. 

whicli  also  spread  along  tte  then  deserted  banks  of  tlie  stream,  from  tlie 
bridge  of  La  Toiirnelle  to  wbat  is  now  tbe  bridge  of  tbe  Saints- Peres. 

Two  of  tbese  colleges  call  for  special  notice.  The  first  is  the  College  of 
Navarre,  which  was  founded  in  1304  by  Queen  Jeanne  de  Navarre,  wife 
of  Philippe  le  Bel.  This  college,  constru.cted  to  receive  seventy  students,  of 
whom  thirty  were  students  of  arts,  twenty  of  theology,  and  twenty  of 
grammar,  soon  became  a  model  for  establishments  of  a  similar  kind,  and  the 
high  reputation  which  it  had  acqviired  endured  for  four  centuries.  The 
University  deposited  its  valuable  archives  in  the  chapel  of  the  college,  which 
was  dedicated  to  St.  Louis,  the  ancestor  of  the  royal  founders.  The  sons  of 
the  highest  families,  and  even  princes  of  the  reigning  house,  received  in 
this  learned  retreat  the  elements  of  a  classical  education,  and  moreover,  hy 
the  terms  of  the  charter,  the  King  was  the  first  bursar  of  the  Navarre 
College,  which  may  be  considered  as  one  of  the  most  aristocratic  institu- 
tions of  that  time,  and  also  the  one  in  which  the  rules  and  regulations  were 
the  least  strict. 

The  College  de  Montaigu,  established  at  a  later  date  in  the  Rue  des 
Sept-Yoies,  upon  Mount  St.  Genevieve,  was  scarcely  less  famous  than  that  of 
Navarre,  but  its  history  is  a  very  different  one.  Though  it  was  originally 
founded  by  the  wealthy  Parisian  family  of  Montaigu,  upon  such  liberal 
terms  that  an  income  of  ten  livres  (equivalent  to  twelve  or  fifteen  pounds 
sterling  in  the  present  day)  was  secured  for  the  maintenance  of  each  student, 
it  was  so  badly  managed  by  the  regents  that  the  total  revenue  of  the  college 
fell  to  eleven  sols  in  gold,  equivalent  to  about  £40  at  the  present  time.  At 
this  period  (1483)  the  college  passed  into  the  hands  of  Jean  Standonck,  one 
of  the  most  original  characters  amongst  the  ancient  schoolmasters.  Son  of 
a  Mechlin  tailor,  arriving  in  Paris  with  an  ardent  desire  to  obtain  a  liberal 
education,  and  received  out  of  charity  by  the  Abbey  of  St.  Grenevieve, 
whose  hospitality  he  repaid  by  doing  odds  and  ends  of  work,  Jean  Standonck, 
being  endowed  with  an  uncommon  degree  of  energy  and  perseverance,  rose 
from  the  condition  of  a  servant  to  that  of  pupil,  and  eventually  became  a 
master.  Selected  by  his  fellows  to  manage  the  afPairs  of  the  Montaigu 
College,  he  succeeded  in  restoring  order  and  economy  in  the  house,  in 
founding  twelve  fresh  bursarships,  and  meeting  all  expenses,  without  incur- 
ring any  new  debt.  But  he  only  effected  all  these  improvements  by 
imposing  upon  his  students  a  very  austere  regime,  and  compelling  them  to 


UXIVERSITIES,   SCHOOLS,   STUDEXTS.  27 


lead  a  life  as  full  of  privations  as  his  own  had  been.  Arduous  study, 
frequent  fasts,  a  meagre  pittance,  and  a  rigid  discipline,  such  became  the 
])roverbial  condition  of  the  ^lontaigu  students — a  condition  wittily  expressed 
in  their  Latin  motto:  Mons  acutus,  ingenium  acutum,  denies  acufi  (a  sharp- 
pomted  mountain,  a  sharp-pointed  mind,  and  sharp-pointed  teeth).  Attired 
in  a  cape  of  coarse  cloth,  closed  in  front,  and  surmounted  by  a  hood  fastening 
at  the  back,  they  were  called  the  paiirres  capeUes  of  Montaigu,  and  thev 
were  to  be  seen  daily  fetching  their  share,  conformably  with  their  statutes,  of 
the  bread  which  'Cua  Carthusians  of  the  Rue  d'Enfer  distributed  to  the  poor. 
Erasmus  and  Rabelais,  both  of  whom  learnt  by  personal  experience,  at  a  few 
years'  interval,  the  hardships  of  the  Montaigu  regime,  have  immortalised,  each 
after  his  own  fashion,  their  melancholy  college  recollections ;  the  first  in  one 
of  his  ingenious  colloquies,  by  pouring  his  maledictions  on  the  inhuman 
treatment,  the  imhealthy  lodging,  the  unwholesome  and  insufficient  food 
which  had  seriously  injured  his  health  while  a  student  there ;  the  second  by 
putting  in  the  mouth  of  his  mock  heroes  many  a  stinging  epigram  about  the 
college  de  pouillerie. 

Independently  of  the  University  and  of  the  colleges,  there  also  existed  in 
France,  as  in  all  Christendom  during  the  Middle  Ages,  several  kinds  of 
schools,  some  elementary,  open  to  both  sexes,  and  generally  tei-med  litth 
Kclwoh,  or  French  scJiooh,  as  all  that  was  taught  in  them  was  reading  and 
writing,  with  a  few  rudiments  of  the  vulgar  tongue  and  sacred  music ;  the 
others,  reserved  for  boys,  and  called  the  great  schools,  or  the  Latin  schools 
(Fig.  24).  Both  of  these  schools,  generally  attached  to  the  churches,  were 
m  most  cases  under  the  control  of  a  single  superintendent  responsible  to  the 
bishop  of  the  diocese.  This  superintendent,  called  either  rector  or  head- 
master of  schools,  received  from  each  scholar  a  fixed  annual  fee,  payable  in 
two  instalments,  and  a  supplementary  sum,  also  divided  into  two  parts,  one 
of  which  was  set  apart  for  the  repair  of  the  building,  and  placed  in  the 
hands  of  the  provost,  ^^\{\e  the  other  was  used  for  the  purchase  of  birches, 
which  were  kept  in  hand  by  the  head-porter  or  Iiircher  (Fig.  25).  These 
schools  only  received  free  scholars  whom  their  parents  or  relatives  under- 
took to  board.  They  had  at  their  disposal,  most  of  them  under  the  patronage 
of  some  private  founder,  if  not  under  the  auspices  of  the  parochial  chapter, 
a  certain  number  of  purses  or  gratuities,  which  were  given  to  the  needy 
students  in  return  for  some  small  services  which  they  were  required  to  render. 


UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOLS,   STUDENTS. 


Thus,  for  instance,  in  the  schools  at  Troyes,  the  primitives,  so  called  because 
of  the  early  morning  work  they  had  to  do,  were  exempted  from  the  payment 
of  any  fees,  in  return  for  which  they  had  to  clean  and  sweep  out  the  school- 
rooms twice  a  week. 

We  learn  from  an  inventory  of  the  silver  plate  of  Marie  d'Anjou,  wife  of 
Charles  VII.,  for  the  years  1464-55 — an  inventory  in  which  are  mentioned 
the  school  books  used  by  Charles,  Duke  of  Berry,  their  second  son — what  were 


Fig.  24. — The  Schoolmaster,  from  the  Danse  macabre,  Guyot  Marchant  edition  (1490). 

the  works  used  for  the  elementary  classes  previously  to  the  invention  of 
printing.  These  books,  which  had  already  been  used  for  the  education  of 
the  Dauphin,  afterwards  Louis  XI.,  are :  1st,  an  A,  B,  C ;  2nd,  a  psalter, 
called  the  Seven  Psalms,  which  children  had  to  get  by  heart ;  3rd,  a  Donat, 
or  treatise  of  the  eight  parts  of  the  discourse  by  ^lius  Donatus,  a  gram- 
marian of  the  fourth  century  ;  4th,  an  Accidens,  another  grammar  treating  of 
the  cases  and  conjugations  of  verbs ;  5th,  a  Cato,  a  collection  of  moral 
distichs  in  Latin,  with  a  French  translation,  attributed  to  Valerius  Cato,  a 


rXIVERSITIES,    SCHOOLS,   STUDEXTS. 


zg 


poet  and  grammarian  mentioned  very  favourably  by  Suetonius ;  6th,  a 
Bocfriiiaf,  or  Latin  grammar,  taken  from  tbe  great  work  of  Priseianus,  a 
grammarian  of  the  fourth  century,  and  made  into  Leonine  verse  (the  last 
syllable  of  each  line  rhjnning  with  the  middle  syllable)  as  a  help  to  the 
memor}',  by  Alexander  de  Yille-Dieu,  who  in  1209  was  a  distinguished 
teacher  in  the. Paris  schools. 

These  works,  although  intended  for  primarj'  instruction,  were  also  meant 
to  give  the  pupils  some  elementarj-  knowledge  of  the  Latin  tongue,  which, 
in  almost  general  use  during  the  3Iiddle  Ages,  was  at  once  the  language 
of    the   Church,    of    letters,  and    of    sciences,  and    was   the    common    idiom 


Fig.  25. — The  Schoolmaster,  after  a  Drawing  by  Soquand  (lo2S). 


amongst  all  Christian  nations.  This  will  explain  how  it  was  that  Latin 
was  not  only  taught,  but  spoken,  to  the  exclusion  of  the  -s-iilgar  tongue,  in  the 
Universities,  the  colleges,  and  the  principal  schools.  It  was  not  until  later, 
when  the  modern  spirit  had  propagated  amongst  the  people  a  multitude  of 
new  ideas  and  sentiments  difficult  to  translate  literall}'  into  Latin,  that  the 
struggle  began  between  the  language  of  the  ancients  and  the  living  tongues 
— a  long  and  eventful  struggle,  which,  after  heroic  efforts  in  favour  of  the 
beautiful  language  immortalised  by  the  masterpieces  of  the  ancient  classic 
writers,  ended  in  Latin  being  finally  relegated  tf)  the  list  of  dead  languages. 
Tt  is  interesting  to  note  what  efforts  were  made  by  the  L^niversity  of  Paris, 
by  the  imposition  of  fines  and  punishments,  in  the  fifteenth,  and  even  up  to 


30  UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOIS,   STUDENTS. 

the  beginning  of  tlie  seventeenth  centiirj',  to  repel  the  invasion  of  French, 
which  the  scholars  naturally  brought  with  them  when  they  arrived  from 
home.  It  is  true  that  a  regulation,  passed  in  1434,  allowed  the  use  of  two 
kinds  of  Latin  :  the  congruous  Latin,  which  every  student  who  had  reached 
his  doctrinal,  or  Latin  sjaitax,  used  exclusively  ;  and  the  incongruous  Latin, 
which  students  were  permitted  to  sjoeak  amongst  each  other  in  the  elementary 
classes.  French,  even  in  private  conversation  and  out  of  school  hours,  was 
generally  prohibited. 

But  the  Latin  tongue,  limited,  so  to  speak,  to  the  domain  of  the 
University,  recovered  all  its  credit  and  renown  when,  at  the  epoch  of  the 
Renaissance,  the  literary  masterpieces  of  Rome  were  once  more  sought 
after,  studied,  and  commented  on  with  ardent  emulation  by  the  learned, 
circulated  in  a  number  of  new  and  revised  editions,  and  welcomed  with 
enthusiasm  by  all  literary  Europe.  Then  it  was  that  men  of  mark  and 
genius,  such  as  Erasmus,  Melancthon,  and  Mathurin  Cordier,  composed 
colloquies  and  dialogues,  which  made  the  language  of  the  Augustan  age 
more  familiar  to  the  youth  of  the  age  of  Francois  I.  and  Charles  Y.  But 
these  efforts,  though  successful  for  the  time,  were  not  long  triumphant,  and 
it  is  a  singular  and  significant  fact  that  of  the  books  of  study  published 
at  this  period  the  only  one  which  has  survived  was  written  in  French,  viz. 
the  CknliU  inierile  et  honnete,  which  first  appeared  at  Poitiers  in  1559,  with 
the  title,  far  more  appropriate  to  the  character  of  the  book,  of  "A  mirror  in 
which  the  young  may  learn  good  morality  and  the  decencies  of  life." 

But  if  the  books  of  study  used  in  the  ancient  schools  are  now  out  of  date 
and  long  since  forgotten,  such  is  not  the  case  with  the  different  kinds  of 
recreation  in  which  boys  and  young  men  used  to  indvdge  as  a  relaxation 
from  a  course  of  study  often  abstract  and  always  severe.  The  Gargantua  of 
Rabelais,  and  the  familiar  dialogues  of  Mathurin  Cordier,  enable  us  to  frame 
a  list  of  games  which  are  still  plaj-ed,  though  in  some  cases  under  slightly 
different  names ;  as,  for  instance,  the  ball,  prisoner's-base,  leap-frog,  quoits, 
clicquette  (pieces  of  wood,  or  shords,  which  were  beaten  one  against  another 
to  make  them  ring),  ninepins,  bat  and  trap,  spinning-tops  and  whipping-tops, 
ihefossctte,  or  pitch-farthing  (which  was  formerly  played  with  nuts),  odd  or 
even,  cards,  draughts,  tennis,  heads  or  tails,  tip-cat,  &c. 

These  were  the  peaceable  games  of  children  and  scholars,  but  they  were 
too  tame  for  the  turbulent  tastes  of  the  older  students,  whose  bad  reputation 


LXIVERSITIES,    SCHOOLS,   STCBEX'/S. 


31 


is  still  proverbial.       From  all  time,   grave  magistrates,  illustrious  writers, 
famous  citizens,  and  even  saintly  personages  have  prefaced  their  career  of 


i cTjD  3;i)IirimiUV1 3IIBUHlPcl)110HJOll3UlD|30tlOllBplJ]3UlJlBH83l>^ 


ii-ill. 


labour,  study,  and  virtue  bj^  a  more  or  less  jjrolonged  sowing  of  wild  oats. 
At  all  times,  moreover,  Paris  offered  only  too  many  temptations  to  vice  and 
dissipation.       It  is  easy,  therefore,  to  understand  what  niusl  have  been  the 


32  UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOIS,   STUDENTS. 

condition,  in  the  twelftli  and  thirteenth  centuries,  when  the  police,  as  an 
institution,  were  hardly  known,  and  when  public  morality  still  felt  the 
effects  of  long  years  of  decadence,  of  a  population  of  students  penned  vip  in 
a  territory  which  they  looked  ujion  as  a  freehold,  consisting,  as  they  did,  of 
youths  on  the  verge  of  manhood  and  of  full-grown  men,  belonging  to  various 
nationalities,  and  left  to  their  own  passions.  When  it  is  further  remembered 
that  a  degree  of  arts  could  not  be  obtained  before  the  age  of  one-and- 
twenty,  and  one  of  theology  till  the  age  of  thirty-five  (after  eight  years' 
study  in  the  latter  case),  no  wonder  that  this  turbulent  quarter  was  a 
nuisance,  and  even  a  danger  for  the  honest  and  peaceful  inhabitants  of  Paris. 

The  whole  city  was  more  than  once  disturbed,  and  public  safety  endan- 
gered, by  the  aggressive  and  disorderly  habits  of  the  students.  Not  a  day 
passed  without  quarrels  and  fights,  arising  out  of  the  most  futile  causes. 
The  insidting  ei)ithets  which  the  students  applied  to  each  other  show,  more- 
over, the  antipathies  which  prevailed  amongst  them,  and  the  coarseness  which 
was  common  to  them  all.  The  English  had  the  reputation  of  being  cowards 
and  drunkards  ;  the  French  were  proud  and  efi'eminate  ;  the  Germans  dirty, 
gluttonous,  and  ill-tempered ;  the  Normans  boastful  and  deceitful ;  the 
Burgundians  brutal  and  stupid ;  the  Flemish  bloodthirsty,  vagabond,  and 
house-burners  ;  and  so  forth  for  the  rest. 

With  all  this,  the  person  of  a  clerk  (a  title  appertaining  to  every  student 
who  had  obtained  his  license)  was,  according  to  the  canons  of  the  Church, 
inviolable ;  to  lay  hands  upon  a  student  was  to  commit  a  crime  which 
entailed  excommunication,  and  which  the  Pope  alone  could  absolve  (Fig.  26). 
This  will  explain  the  audacity  and  arrogance  of  the  students,  and  it  is  no 
wonder  that  the  civil  authorities  were,  for  all  the  most  minute  precautions, 
continually  at  a  loss  how  to  repress  the  excesses  of  these  riotous  youths, 
who,  going  about  day  and  night  in  armed  bands,  indulged  in  every  kind  of 
disorder,  and  did  not  stop  at  any  crime. 

The  establishment  of  the  colleges  led  to  a  decided  chano-e  for  the  better. 
Previously  to  this  happy  innovation  the  students  took  advantage  of  the  most 
trifling  religious  or  literai'y  occurrence  to  increase  the  nimiber  of  festivals, 
which  were  celebrated  with  no  lack  of  dancing,  masquerades,  banquets,  &c. 
All  these  scholastic  rejoicings  were  afterwards  reduced  to  two  refreshments 
(days  intended  for  a  carousal),  one  at  the  beginning,  the  other  at  the  end  of 
the  public  examinations,  a  period  at  which  the  candidates  elected  a  captain 


rX/J7-:RS/77/iS.   SCHOOLS,    STCDEXTS. 


33 


from  amongst  themselves,  and  to  a  fete  in  hononi-  of  the  patron  saint  of  each 
nation.  This  was  cxehisive  of  the  great  festivals  celebrated  in  honour  of 
such  and  such  a.  patron  of  the  University  corporation. 

The  Universit}',  after  having  at  first  been  placed  beneath  the  guardian- 
ship of  the  Holy  Virgin,  patroness  of  the  Church  and  of  the  city  of  Paris, 
and  whose  image  is  to  be  traced  at  every  epoch  upon  the  seals  and  other  dis- 


Fig.  27. — The  legend  of  St.  Nicholas,  after  the  Bourge.?  •stained  gl.i'ss  of  Fathers  Cahier  and 
Martin  (Thirteenth  Century).  The  lower  part  refers  to  the  popular  story  of  the  three  students 
whom  an  innkeeper  and  his  wife  assassinated  and  put  into  a  salt-tvih,  and  whom  the  saint 
hrought  to  life  again.  At  the  top  the  same  saint  is  seen  hringing  by  night  a  sum  of  money 
sufficient  for  the  dowry  of  three  poor  maidens  whom  their  father  was  unahle  to  provide  for. 

tinctive  emblems  of  the  schools,  had  adopted  as  patrons  and  protectors 
several  saints  to  whom  special  homage  was  rendered,  viz.  St.  Thomas  a 
Becket  of  Canterbury,  St.  Cosmo,  St.  Adrian,  and  St.  Andrew.  After- 
wards the  only  saints  feted  were  St.  Nicholas  and  St.  TVitherine  (Fig.  27),  the 
one  patron  of  the  clerks,  the  other  of  young  people  generally,  but  especially 
of  girls.  The  nations  also  had  their  special  patrons.  When  the  wars  with 
the  English  lessened  tlie  jiopularity  of  St.  Thomas  of  Canterbury,  the  nation  of 

F 


34 


UNIVERSITIES,   SCHOOLS,  STUDENTS. 


France  invoked  by  preference  St.  William  of  Boiirges,  an  ancient  pupil  of 
the  University.  One  tribe  of  the  Picardy  nation  honoured  St.  Firmin,  the 
first  Bishop  of  Amiens,  while  the  other  tribe  feted  St.  Piat,  Bishop  of 
Tournay.  The  patron  saint  of  the  ]N"ormandy  nation  was  St.  Pomain,  Arch- 
bishop of  Rouen.  The  nation  of  England,  after  having  stamped  upon  its 
seal  the  imao-e  of  Edmund  the  Martyr,  Bishop  of  Norwich,  and  of  St. 
Catherine  and  St.  Martin,  made  a  point,  when  it  became  the  nation  of 
Germany,  of  celebrating  the  festival  of  St.  Charlemagne,  who  was  looked 
upon  as  the  founder  of  the  clergy  throughout  Christendom. 

The  patron  festivals  were,  therefore,  very  numerous  in  the  Universitj^  of 
Paris,  and  the  students  were  always  ready  to  interrupt  their  studies  to  take 
part  in  the  solemnities  which  were  generally  held  in  the  famous  Pre-aux- 
Clercs,  their  veritable  domain,  beginning  at  the  Faubourg  St.  Germain  des 
Pres,  and  extending  down  to  the  Seine,  all  along  what  are  now  the  Rue  St. 
Dominique  and  the  Rue  de  I'llniversite. 

Of  all  the  festivals  at  which  the  students  took  part  in  a  body,  the  most 
popular  was  the  Lendit  fair,  which  they  looked  upon  as  instituted  expressly 
for  their  amusement,  though  it  dates  back  beyond  the  foundation  of  the 
University  itself. 

The  Paris  Cathedral,  having  received  from  Constantinople  in  1109  some 
authentic  fragments  of  the  cross,  the  Bishop,  in  compliance  with  the  wishes 
of  the  population  who  could  not  find  room  in  the  Cathedral,  where  the 
relics  had  been  deposited,  carried  them  in  great  pomp,  accompanied  by  his 
clergy,  to  the  plain  of  St.  Denis,  where  there  was  room  enough  for  the  vast 
concourse  of  worshippers  who  assembled  to  contemplate  and  adore  these 
relics.  It  is  a  well-ascertained  fact  that  the  schools  of  the  cloister  of  Notre- 
Dame  took  part  in  the  procession.  The  same  ceremony  and  procession  were 
renewed  at  stated  periods ;  and,  in  the  course  of  time,  a  market  or  fair  was 
established  upon  the  very  spot  consecrated  by  the  religious  ceremony.  Every 
year,  on  the  12th  of  Jmie,  the  day  after  the  feast  of  St.  Barnabas,  the  Lendit 
(or  rather  the  Indict,  that  is  to  sa}^,  the  day  appointed)  fair  was  opened. 
It  was  also  called  the  feast  of  the  parchment  (see  the  volume,  "  xVrts  in  the 
Middle  Ages,"  chapter  Parchment,  Paper).  Early  in  the  morning  of  that 
day,  the  students,  attired  in  their  best,  assembled  on  horseback  at  the  top 
of  Moimt  St.  Genevieve,  to  accompany  the  rector  of  the  Universitj^,  who, 
arrayed  in  his  scarlet  cloak,  and  wearing  his  doctor's  cap,  proceeded  on  a 


J;.  28.— Keetor  of  the  1 


Prague  University  and  Scholars  of  the  difi.rent  Nations  who  studied  in  the  same  Un.vcr.ity. 
From  an  ancient  Picture  still  possessed  hy  the  Prague  rniversitv. 


36  rXIVERSITIES,  SCHOOLS,   STUDEXTS. 


mule  or  haclmey,  and  accompanied  by  tlie  deans,  proctors,  and  myrmidons, 
to  the  plain  of  St.  Denis,  where  the  market  for  the  sale  of  parchment  was 
already  opened.  The  rector,  upon  reaching  the  fair,  caused  to  be  put 
aside  as  much  parchment  as  would  be  required  bj^  the  University  for  the 
coming  3^ear,  and  received  from  the  sellers  a  donation  equivalent  to  £100 
in  the  present  day.  After  this  the  students  alighted  from  their  horses, 
and,  instead  of  forming  part  of  the  procession  back  to  Paris,  amused  them- 
selves at  the  fair.  This  invariably  led  to  riot  and  disorder,  and  not  a 
year  passed  without  blood  being  sjjilt.  Thus,  from  the  fifteenth  to  the  six- 
teenth centurj',  the  decrees  of  Parliament  against  the  carrying  of  arms  or 
sticks,  decrees  which  were  continually  being  renewed  and  always  neglected, 
testify  to  the  gravity  of  the  evil  and  to  the  obstacles  in  the  way  of  putting 
a  stop  to  it.  At  last,  in  1566,  the  fair  was  transferred  from  the  plain  to  the 
town  of  St.  Denis,  and  at  about  the  same  period  paper  began  to  supersede 
parchment  even  in  public  documents.  The  rector,  therefore,  ceased  getting 
a  supply  of  it  at  the  Lendit  fair,  and  the  students  had  no  further  pretext  to 
attend  this  fair,  which  soon  fell  into  disuse.  By  the  beginning  of  the 
seventeenth  century  the  onlj"-  vestige  left  of  it  was  the  general  holdiday  which 
the  rector  granted  to  the  students  of  the  University  upon  the  first  Monday 
after  the  feast  of  St.  Barnabas. 

The  clerks  and  students  of  Paris  wei'e  also  the  principal  actors  in,  if  not  the 
inventors  of,  certain  ridiculous  and  builesque  ceremonies  which,  commenced 
in  the  Church,  and,  after  having  been  tolerated  by  it,  under  the  name  of  the 
Feasts  of  the  Fusans,  of  the  Ass,  and  of  the  Innocents,  Avere  only  suppressed 
by  the  action  of  the  Church  itself  (see  in  this  volmne  the  chapter  on  Fopidav 
Superstitions).  These  singular  and  absurd  birfPooneries,  which  were  so 
popular  amongst  the  students,  were,  in  course  of  time,  succeeded  by  more 
sober  recreations,  such  as  theatrical  representations  within  the  colleges,  open- 
air  games,  periodical  excursions  to  the  country,  as,  for  instance,  those  to  Our 
Lady  of  the  Vines  and  Our  Lady  of  the  Fields,  or  the  Mai/  excursion,  which 
terminated  in  the  planting  of  a  tree  in  full  bloom  before  the  rector's  gate. 
But,  as  Yallet  de  Viriville  remarks,  it  took  many  years  to  efface  the  old 
traditions  of  violence  and  insubordination,  for  the  French  chroniclers  of  the 
sixteenth  century  represent  the  students  of  their  time  as  amusing  themselves 
in  a  manner  that  generally  exceeded  the  limits  of  propriety.  To  pace  the 
streets  at  night,  without  regard  for  the  tranquillity  of  the  citizens  or  for  the 


UXIVERSiriES,   SCHOOLS,   STLDEMS. 


37 


29,-Sfal  of  the  University  of  Oxford.  Fig.  aO.— Seal  of  the  Uuiveisity  of  Cumbridae 


Fig.  31.— Seal  of  Balliol  College 
(founded  12(;'.i),  Oxford. 


Fig.  ?,l. — Seal  of  the  l'ni'.ei>iiy  of  Frague. 


38 


UNIVERSITIES,  SCHOOIS,   STUDENTS. 


modesty  of  their  wives  and  daugliters,  to  belabour  tbe  watcbmen  and  tlirow 
tlie  sergeants  into  the  Seine,  were  deeds  of  valour  recorded  in  the  souvenirs 
of  the  University,  and  long  talked  of  by  the  pupils  of  the  Navarre  and 
Montaigu  Colleges. 

The  student  of  the  Middle  Ages  was,  as  a  peculiar  type,  essentially 
Parisian  at  first,  though  he  soon  became  naturalised  in  all  the  towns  where 
a  University  was  founded  after  the  tAvelfth  century.     He  was,  perhaps,  the 


Fig.  33. — External  View  of  Leyden  University,  founded  in  1575  by  William  of  Nassau.  From  a 
contemporary  Drawing  in  the  work  entitled,  "  Illustrium  Hollandia^,  etc.,  ordinum  alma 
Academia  Leydensis  "  (Lugd.  Batav.,  1614,  in  quarto). 


greatest  gossip  and  pedant  in  Italy,  where  the  University  of  Bologna,  founded 
in  1158,  soon  led  to  the  creation  of  Universities  at  Naples  (1224),  Padua 
(1228),  Eome  (1245),  and  Pisa  (1333).  Students  of  this  stamp  naturally 
became  still  more  arrogant  and  quarrelsome  in  the  Germanic  Universities 
which  were  founded  in  succession  at  Prague  (1348),  Cologne  (1385),  Heidel- 
berg (1386),  and  Leipsic  (1409).  The  English  students  at  Oxford  (1200)  and 
Cambridge  (1257)  were  less  noisy  ;  the  Spanisli  students  in  the  Universities 
of   Valencia   (1209),    Salamanca  (1250),   and   Yalladolid    (1246)   were    more 


UXIVEKSITIES  OF 


Date  of  Foundation.   Xame  of  Univeisif  % 

About  1180. 

MONTPELLIER. 

1223. 

Toulouse. 

130.3. 

Orleans. 

1330. 

Grexoble. 

1364. 

AXGEKS. 

1365. 

OilAXGE. 

1423. 

Dole. 

1431. 

Poitiers. 

1436. 
1460. 


Fig.  34.—: 


Ffauiework  of  the  first  page  of  tlie  MjS.  of  the  "  Df.uze  <lamos  de  Rhetoriqvie  "  (Si.\teenth  Century). 
Pari.s  Nalioniil  Libraiy. 


40  UNIVERSITIES,    SCHOOLS,   STUDENTS. 


pompous  and  austere ;  the  Portuguese  students  at  Coimbra  (1279)  and 
Lisbon  (1290)  were  more  proud  and  vain ;  the  Swiss  students  at  Geneva 
(1368)  and  Bale  (1459)  appear  to  have  been  rather  torpid  and  full  of 
formalitj',  while  the  Dutch  students  at  Lonvain  (1426)  and  Leyden  (1575) 
were  remarkable  for  their  close  application  to  work.  But  the  Paris  student 
hardly  changed  in  anj^  respect ;  he  remained  the  same  gay  and  mirthful 
companion  that  Ptabelais  has  depicted  in  the  Panurge  of  his  "  Pantagruel. " 


PHILOSOPHIC    SCIENCES. 


Annihilation  of  the  Pagan  Philosophy.— Xpw  Christian  Philosophy.— Martianus  Capella.— 
Boethius  and  Cassiodorus.— Isidore  of  Seville.— Bede,  Alcuiu,  and  Raban  Maurus.— John 
Scotus  Erigena. — Origin  of  Scholasticism. — Gerbert.— Realism  and  Nominalism.— Beranger  of 
Tours.— Roscelin  and  St.  Anselm.— William  of  Champeaux  and  Abelard.— Gilbert  de  la  Porree 
and  St.  Bernard.— Amaury  de  Bene.— Albertus  JIagnus  and  St.  Thomas  Aquinas.— The 
Franciscans  and  the  Dominicans.— William  of  Ockham.— Decadence  of  Scholasticism.- 
Platonists  and  Aristotelians.— The  Philosophy  of  the  Renaissance.— The  Lutheran  Schools. 
— P.  Ramus. — Montaigne. 


H  K  love  of  knowledge,  says  Aristotle,  is 
natural  to  all  men.  It  is  the  passion  to 
^\■bieh  the  wise  men  of  antiquitj-  were 
slaves,  and  which  still  inflames  the  learned 
in  onr  own  day.  It  is  the  source  of  all 
science  and  of  all  philosophy.  From 
an  etjTQological  point  of  view,  what  is 
philosophy  ?  It  is  the  love  of  knowledge. 
The  Middle  Ages,  notwithstanding  the 
ardour  of  religious  faith  at  that  period, 
were  not  without  j^hilosophy  ;  for  during 
that  period,  memorable  for  the  fervour 
of  belief,  the  human  het.rt  was  not  insensible  to  the  noble  passion  which  is 
mnate  in  it  of  knowing  and  understanding  all  things.  Men  sought  with 
more  or  less  success  to  discover  the  truth,  and  hence  resulted  the  various 
aspects  which  the  philo.sophy  of  the  Middle  Ages  offers  to  tho.sc  who  study  it. 
In  the  first  centuries  of  the  Christian  era,  when  the  traditions  of  the 
schools  of  antiquity  .seem  lo.st,  the  cultivation  of  science  was  abandoned  by 
all  save  a  few,  and  even  with  them  the  whole  of  their  philosophy  consisted 
m  a  few  ill-defined  aphorisms.  They  were  succeeded  by  a  few  Ijold  tliinkers, 
who,  anxious  to  obtain  the  cre.Iit  of  being  thought  masters,  put  forth  the 

G 


42 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


most  darino-  statements,  some  wliolesorae  and  others  dangerous,  which  took 
root  a  little  later ;  and  the  thirteenth  century  shows  us  the  thinkers  of  the 
Middle  Ao-es  grappling  vigorously  with  barbarism,  and  gradually  attaining  a 
philosophy  which  reconciled  the  verities  of  the  faith  and  rational  concep- 
tions.     But  this  philosophy  was,  in  turn,    attacked  by    daring  innovators. 


Fig.  35. — BoLitums  takes  counsel  of  Dame  Philosophy. —  Miniature  of  the  "Consolation  of 
Boethius,"  Translation  of  Jean  de  Meung,  Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century.— Lihrary 
of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot. 


and,  well  founded  as  it  was,  could  not  resist  their  onslaught.  Men's  minds 
became  very  agitated,  new  systems  came  into  existence,  and  the  Chri.stian 
faith  grew  weaker  ;  and  so  we  find  ourselves  no  longer  in  the  centurj'  of 
St.  Louis,  but  in  that  of  Francois  I.  and  Leo  X. 

Such  are  the  principal  phases  through  which  philosophy  passed  during 


PHIL  OSOPHIC  SCIEXCES. 


the  long,  period  which  began  with  the  last  tumults  of  the  barbarian  inAasion, 
and  ended  with  the  Renaissance  in  the  sixteenth  century.  Its  histuiy  is  for 
the  most  part  difficult  to  study,  and  always  very  dry ;  j-et  it  has  been  made 
the  subject  in  our  day  of  many  works,  the  best  of  which,  despite  its 
numerous  defects,  is  that  of  M.  Haureau,  from  which  we  shall  borrow  largely, 
availing  ourselves  also  of  the  valuable  researches  of  31.  Charles  Jourdain^  the 


^fmwwmt  iti^im:^  Xtutt  k/:^zi 


Kg.  36  -The  Wheel  of  Fortune,- JIi„i.tur.  from  the  "  Consolation  of  lioothius,"  Translation  of 
Jean  de  Meung,  Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century.-Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Finnin-Didot. 

editor  of  Abelard's  works,  and  the  histcn'ian  of  the  philost.phy  of  St.  Thomas 
Aquinas. 

Amongst  tlie  Christian  writers  who  preserved  a  few  remnants  of  ancient 
learning  amidst  the  ruins  of  the  Iloman  empire  must  be  mentioned,  first  of 
all,  Martianus  Capella,  philosopher  and  poet  of  llu.  fiflj,  ci-nfury,  the  author  of 
the  "Satyricon,"  a  sort  of  encyclopa'dia  in  prose  and  in  \ersi.,  ^^l^•^]l  ^\•as  long 


^  PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


adopted  in  the  schools  of  the  Middle  Ages  as  the  poetic  summary  of  the 
teaching  which  it  attributes  to  the  seven  liberal  arts-grammar,  dialectics, 
rhetoric"  geometry,  arithmetic,  astronomy,  and  music.  This  great  ^York, 
which  is  more  remarkable  for  wit  and  imagination  than  for  learnmg  and 
good  taste,  may  be  looked  upon  as  the  final  flicker  of  ancient  thought-as  the 
first  glimmer  of  the  da^ra  of  modern  thought. 

Abnost  contemporaneous  with  Martianus  Capella  comes  the  patrician 
Eoethius,  minister  of  Theodoric,  put  to  death  by  order  of  his  master,  the 
learned  interpreter  of  Aristotle's  treatises  on  Logic,  and  author  of  a  work  m 
prose  and  in  verse,  which  he  entitled,  "Of  the  Consolation  of  Philosophy  "  (Figs. 
35  and  36),  and  which  was  one  of  the  most  popular  books  of  the  Middle  Ages. 
A  contemporary  and  friend  of  Boethius  at  the  court  of  Theodoric  was  Cassio- 
dorus,  also  famous  for  his  learning  and  for  his  fondness  for  ancient  works,  copies 
of  which  he  had  made,  and  which  he,  more  than  any  one  else,  was  instrumental 
in  preserving  for  the  benefit  of  future  generations.  Cassiodorus  was  the 
author  of  a  treatise  on  the  Mind,  another  on  the  Seven  Liberal  Arts,  a  great 
work  on  Divine  Institutions,  and  letters  which  form  a  very  valuable  contribu- 
tion to  the  history  of  his  time. 

A  century  after  Boethius  and  Cassiodorus,  the  part  which  they  had  played 
in  Italy  fell  in  Spain  to  Isidore  of  Seville,  who,  discouraged  at  first  by  the  diffi- 
culties of  study,  obtained  by  force  of  perseverance  the  foremost  place  amongst 
the  writers  of  his  time  for  the  extent  and  variety  of  his  works.  In  addition 
to  Commentaries  on  Holy  Writ,  and  a  History  of  the  Visigoth  Kings,  he  has 
left  a  great  work,  "  De  Originibus,  or  the  Ethnologies,"  in  the  twenty  volumes 
composing  which  he  sums  up  the  elements  of  theology,  jurisprudence,  natural 
history,  agriculture,  mechanics,  and  the  liberal  arts. 

In  another  part  of  Europe,  Ireland,  converted  to  Christianity  by  St. 
Patrick,  became  rapidly  covered  with  monasteries,  as  densely  populated  as 
many  to^^^ls,  and  which  still  retained  some  remnants  of  literary  culture.  In 
England,  at  the  monastery  of  Jarrow  (Durham),  was  educated  the  venerable 
Bede  ;  tliere  he  lived,  taught,  and  died  (735),  just  as  he  was  completing  the 
commentary  of  a  Psalm,  leaving  behind  him  various  works,  amongst  which 
are  several  treatises  useful  as  an  introduction  to  the  study  of  science. 

It  was  in  an  English  monastery,  too,  at  York,  that  Alcuin,  the  most 
energetic  and  learned  of  the  assistants  employed  by  Charlemagne  to  improve 
the  condition  of  his  schools,  was  brought  up.      The  books  which  he  has  left 


PHILUSUPHIC   SCIEXCES.  45 

behind  him  are  instinct  with  the  noblest  enthusiasm  for  philosophy,  which  he 
does  not  sejDarate  from  the  liberal  arts,  but  the  importance  of  which  he 
foresees,  and  which  he  looks  upon  as  the  best  preparation  for  the  study  of 
divinity-. 

The  work  of  Alcuin  was  continued  b}-  his  disei^jle,  Rabau  Maurus,  who 
died  Archbishop  of  Mainz  in  8-36.  He  contributed  to  the  first  progress  of 
the  vulgar  tongue  by  the  comj^osition  of  a  Latin-Teuton  glossary  for  all  the 
books  of  the  Old  and  Xew  Testament.  The  voluminous  collection  of  his 
works  comprises,  together  with  commentaries  upon  the  Sacred  Scriptures,  a 
treatise  upon  the  "  Instruction  of  Clerks,"  another  upon  the  "  Calculati(m  of 
Time,"  and,  above  all,  an  encyclopaedia  in  twenty  books,  which  he  entitled, 
"  On  the  Universe,"  and  in  which  he  treats  succes.sively  of  God,  of  the  Divine 
Persons,  of  the  angels,  of  men,  and  of  the  other  creatures. 

A  man  possessing  more  original  but  less  solid  and  reliable  qualities  than 
Eaban  was  the  Irish  John,  surnamed  Scotus  or  Erigena,  who  figured  in  the 
reign  of  Charles  the  Bold  (Fig.  37)  amongst  the  masters  of  the  Palace 
School  founded  in  Paris  by  Charlemagne.  Scotus,  whose  talent  was  subtle 
and  hardy,  and  who  was  well  versed  in  the  Greek  language,  got  lost  in  the 
mazes  of  a  philosojjhy  ^\hich  compromised  the  verities  of  the  faith  by  con- 
founding them  with  the  pantheistic  hallucinations  of  the  school  of  Alexandria. 
His  principal  work  is  a  treatise  upon  the  "  Division  of  Natures,"  in  which  he 
teaches  that  the  creation  is  eternal ;  that  God  derived  the  world  from  himself, 
and  fomied  it  of  his  ovra.  substance  ;  th;it  the  Creator  and  the  creature  must  not, 
therefore,  be  regarded  as  objects  distinct  from  one  another  ;  that  the  creature 
exists  in  God  ;  and  that  God,  by  an  ineffable  marvel,  is  created  in  the  creature, 
&c.  JVo  wonder  that  these  strange  doctrines  were  anathematized  b}-  the  Church, 
and  that  in  the  early  part  of  the  Middle  Ages  they  had  few  adepts.  The 
name  of  John  Scotus  had  but  a  momentary  celebrity,  and  was  soon  forgotten. 

There  is  no  need  to  dwell  upon  several  other  masters,  such  as  Heiric  and 
Rami  of  Anxerre,  whom  j)osterity  has  almost  forgotten,  much  as  they  were 
thought  of  by  their  contemporaries.  But  a  few  words  are  essential  about 
that  remarkable  man,  Gerbert,  born  in  Auvergne  in  the  fii'st  half  of  the  tenth 
centurj',  educated  at  Aurillac  by  the  monks  of  the  Abbej-  of  St.  Geraud, 
mixed  up  in  the  course  of  his  life  in  the  events  which  agitated  France, 
Germany,  and  Italy,  councillor  of  the  Emperors  of  Germany,  in  turn  school- 
man, diplomatist.   Archbishop  of    Rheims  and    Paxcnna,    I'ojx'    in   the  j'ear 


46 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


Fig.  37.— (lount  Vivien,  Titular  Abbot  of  St.  Martin  of  Tours,  dedicating  to  Charles  the  Bold 
a  Bible  written  in  his  Abbey.  Charles  is  seated  on  his  throne,  surrounded  by  his  nobles  and 
guards.  The  Abbot  comes  before  him,  escorted  by  ten  priests,  right  and  left. — Miniature  from 
"Charles  the  Bold's  Bible,"  Manusoript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century.— National  Library,  Paris. 

1000,  and,  amitlst  tlie  cares  of  public  Ufe,  finding  time  to  cultivate  the 
sciences,  a  gifted  dialectician,  well  versed  in  mathematics  and  physics,  and 
inventor  of  an  h\'draulic  organ  and  clock.       The  learning  and  good  fortune 


PHILOSOPHIC   SCIEXCES.  47 

of  Gerbei't  made  such  an  inijn'cssion  upon  the  i>opular  mind  that  lie  was 
reputed  to  have  sold  himself  to  the  devil. 

Towards  the  middle  of  the  twelfth  century  there  were  some  symptoms 
of  the  chano'e  which  was  comin"'  over  men's  minds,  and  which  was  destined 
to  profit  both  sacred  studj'  and  secidar  science. 

A  discussion  took  place  as  to  the  dog-nia  of  the  Eucharist.  It  was  com- 
menced by  the  Archdeacon  Beranger,  a  native  of  Tours,  who  denied  that  in 
the  sacrament  the  bread  and  wine  were  transformed  into  the  bodj'  and  blood 
of  Christ.  The  doctrine  of  Beranger  was  reproved  by  the  whole  Church  ; 
several  councils  condemned  it,  among:st  the  fiercest  of  its  adversaries  beina: 
Lanfranc  of  Paris,  Archbishop  of  Canterlniry. 

Beranger  had  represented  reason  as  having  confidence  in  herself,  and 
being  more  disjDOsed  to  follow,  in  the  interpretation  of  the  Christian  mysteries, 
her  own  lights  than  mere  tradition.  Faith — docile,  humble,  and  submissive, 
but  faith  making  an  effcjrt  to  arrive  at  an  understanding  of  Divine  truth — was 
represented  by  the  jjious  and  illustrious  St.  Ansebn,  the  successor  of  Lairfranc 
at  Canterbury.  Amongst  other  works,  iSt.  Anselm  has  bequeathed  to  us  the 
"Monologium"  and  the  "Prologium,"  in  which,  without  resorting  to  the  scho- 
lastic fonnula;',  and  without  going  back  to  Koly  Writ  for  any  important  proofs, 
he  demonstrates  the  existence  and  the  attributes  of  God  by  the  very  idea  of 
God,  !ind  the  logical  sequence  of  that  idea.  This  is  the  argument  which, 
five  hundred  years  afterwards,  nms  thi'ough  the  philosojjhy  of  Descartes. 
The  works  of  St.  Anselm  earned  for  him  the  title  of  the  second  St.  Augustine. 

But  at  the  same  period  there  arose  a  controversy,  wholly  philosophical  in 
appearance,  but  which  had  a  close  affinity  with  theology,  as  to  the  nature  of 
general  and  universal  ideas — that  is  trj  saA',  of  the  ideas  which  can  be  applied 
to  several  things  ;  as,  for  instance,  the  idea  of  humanity  applies  to  all  men. 
Are  general  ideas  merely  convenient  formuhe  for  abridging  mental  effort  and 
assisting  the  memory  ?  or  is  there,  apart  from  special  ideas,  a  distinct 
essence,  an  unchangeable  model  of  their  common  characteristics,  and  the 
expression  of  which  in  the  intelligence  is  an  idea  or  notion  of  the  same  kind — 
that  is  to  say,  general  ?  The  question  was  raised  from  the  very  earliest  times, 
and  Plato  had  decided  it  in  the  sense  of  the  reality  of  ideas  :  it  was  handed 
down  to  the  Middle  Ages  by  the  books  of  Aristotle,  or  rather  by  those  of 
Porphyrias,  his  interpreter ;  and,  after  having  long  lieen  dormant  in  the 
schools,    solved  now  in  one  sense,   now  in   anotlior,   it  acquired,  towards  the 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


close  of  the  eleventh  century,  an  extraordinary  importance,  when  a  canon  of 
Compiegne,  Roscelin,  maintained  that  all  reality  is  in  the  individual ;  that 
general  ideas,  or  the  universah,  as  they  were  then  called,  have  no  real  object ; 
that  they  are  purely  verbal  abstractions,  mere  words,  nomina;  whence  the  term 
iwiinnnUmn  applied  to  this  doctrine.  His  opponents,  who  attributed  to  the 
iinirersak  a  certain  amount  of  reality,  were  called  realists.  Roscelin,  applying 
his  theory  to  the  dogma  of  the  Trinity,  argued  that  the  three  Divine  Persons, 
having  only  in  common  the  resemblance  or  identitj^  of  power  and  will, 
constitute  three  distinct  beings,  and,  so  to  speak,  three  Grods. 

St.  Anselm  protested,  in  the  name  of  the  Church,  against  this  interpre- 
tation of  the  dogma,  of  which  it  was  the  negation.  Condemned  in  1092  by 
the  Council  of  Soissons,  Roscelin  retracted  ;  but  the  discussion  which  he 
had  raised  was  destined  to  last  a  long  time.  The  school  was  divided  into 
two  camps :  upon  the  one  side  the  nominalists  who,  in  presence  of  the 
anathema  launched  against  Roscelin,  scarcely  dared  to  avow  their  opinions ; 
upon  the  other  the  realists,  amongst  whom  may  be  mentioned,  besides 
St.  Anselm,  C)do  of  Cambrai,  Hildebert  of  Lavardin,  and  AYilliam  of  Cham- 
peaux.  The  last  mentioned,  who  died  Bishop  of  Chalons-sur-Marne  in  1120, 
expounded  the  doctrine  of  realisni  in  the  schools  of  Paris,  at  the  cloister  of 
Notre-Dame,  and  at  the  Abbey  of  St.  Victor.  The  original  part  of  his 
teaching  was  the  theory  of  the  universal.  He  maintained  that  as  the 
universal  is  the  primitive  substance  properly  so  called,  individuals  are  merely 
iiiodaUfies  or  fashions  of  being,  who  manifest  themselves,  soon  to  disappear, 
upon  the  surface  of  the  unique  and  indivisible  subject.  Pressing  the  cou- 
secpiences  of  his  system  a  little  further,  he  wovdd  have  been  brought  to  deny 
himian  personalitj^  and  liberty — an  error  from  which  he  was  saved  bj^  the 
sincerity  of  his  religious  faith.  "William  of  Champeaux  none  the  less 
recognised  reason  as  the  aibiter  of  natural  philosophj',  and  his  disciple, 
Bernard  of  Chartres,  declared  that  human  thought  is  an  emanation  of  the 
Divine  thought. 

Pierre  Abelard  had  at  first  followed  the  lessons  of  William  of  Champeaux, 
but  he  afterwards  declared  against  him  and  the  realist  doctors  in  a  public 
course  of  philosopher  which  he  commenced  on  his  own  account,  without  any 
patronage — sine  mrigisfro,  as  his  rivals  tauntingly  said.  From  the  verj^  first 
his  success  was  so  great  that  thousands  of  enthusiastic  hearers  assembled  to 
listen  to  his  arguments  and  embrace  his  doctrine.     He  outdid  his  predecessors 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIEXCES.  49 

in  subtlety,  boldness  of  thougbt,  and  especially  in  eloquence ;  be  carried  all 
bis  bearers  witb  biin ;  and  bis  system,  wbieb  was  but  anotber  forin  of 
nominalism,  was  generally  accejjted  in  tbe  scbools,  and  recci^■ed  tbe  name  of 
CoHcoptionalisni.  It  consists  in  tbe  argument  tbat  tbe  uuiversals  are  neitber 
realities,  as  asserted  by  tbe  realists,  nor  mere  words,  as  tbe  nominalists  would 
bave  it,  but  conceptions  of  tbe  intelligence,  wbicb,  baviug  observed  tbe 
resemblance  tbat  several  individuals  bave  to  one  anotber,  resumes  tbese 
resemblances  in  a  notion  wbicb  it  extends  to  all  tbese  individuals.  Tbere 
exist  only  in  nature  individuals  ;  tbe  only  realitj'  of  general  qualities  tbem- 
selves  is  in  tbe  individuals  wbicb  possess  tbem ;  but,  in  presence  of 
individual  objects,  tbere  is  tbe  tbougbt  wbicb  jjerceives  tbeir  relations  to  one 
anotber,  wbicb  extracts  from  tbem  wbat  tbey  bave  in  common  witb  eacb 
otber,  and  wbicb  tbus  engenders  tbe  notion  of  kind  and  sjjecies ;  in  a  word, 
tbe  universals. 

If  Abelard  bad  confined  bimself  to  jji'ojjounding  tbis  tbeory,  be  ^^•ould 
bave,  in  all  probability,  escajDed  tbe  censure  of  tbe  Cbiircb  and  some  of  tbe 
troubles  of  bis  after-life.  But,  like  Eoscelin,  be  claimed  to  apply  bis 
pbilosopbic  doctrine  to  tbe  interpretation  of  tbe  mystery  of  tbe  Trinity.  Like 
Roscelin,  be  failed,  was  condemned  by  two  councils,  and  ended  bis  days, 
repentant  and  submissi\-c,  at  tbe  Abbey  of  Cluny. 

Wbile  Abelard  was  going  astray  in  tbe  patbs  of  a  perilous  tbeology, 
otber  masters  wbo  believed  tbemselves  to  be  \\-iser  tban  be  was,  carried  away 
in  tbeir  turn,  struck  upon  tbe  same  sboal.  (-)ne  of  tbem,  Gilbert  de  la 
Porree,  was  at  first  well  received  by  tbe  Cburcb,  for,  notwitbstanding  tbe 
boldness  of  bis  doctrine,  be  was  raised  to  tbe  bisbopric  of  Poitiers.  He  bad 
been  an  ardent  advei'sarj^  of  tbe  opinions  of  tbe  nominalists,  but  witbout 
declaring  bimself  openly  for  tbe  realists.  His  realism  consisted  in  supposing 
tbat  if  "  tbe  generation  of  tbings  began  from  tbe  moment  tbut  tbe  breatb  of 
tbe  Creator  produced  motion,  tbe  primordial  forms  bave  not,  bowever,  been 
altered  in  tbeir  nature  by  tbe  new  act  wbicb  produced  tlie  sccoiul  forms  ; 
tbus  tbe  primitive  and  real  substances  of  tbe  air,  of  fire,  of  ^\ater,  of  tbe 
eartb,  of  bumanity,  of  corporeity,  &c.,  bave  been,  aie,  and  ever  will  be  in 
tbemselves  permanent,  immovable,  separate  from  tbe  subaltern  substances  or 
born  forms,  wbicb  communicate  tbe  essence  to  tbe  sentient  pbenonu'iui " 
(Fig.  38).  According  to  Gilbert,  it  is  fonn  wbicb  gives  being.  Tbe 
principle  of  tbe  common  essence — tbat  is  to  say,  of  tbe  species  or  kind — will 

H 


PHI  I.  osop/fic  sr/KXCKS. 


5' 


not  be  n  negation,  like  the  nnii-diffprciirr,  hwX  an  affirmation,  like  the 
rniifoniiifj/.  But  gradually  far-seeing  minds,  alarmed  b_y  the  novelty  of  these 
tTieories,  grew  apprehensive  as  to  the  consequences  which  they  might  have 
uj)on  the  faith.  Gil])ert  de  la  Porree  had  not  hesitated  to  declare  that  tlie 
essence  being,  in  the  order  of  generation,  above  the  substance,  the  Diriiiitij 
must  be  something  superior  to  the  individual  of  the  Divine  S3"stem,  who,  in 


Fig.  39. — The  Tree  of  Beings  and  of  Substam-e^. — t'ac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving  of  the 
"  Cuer  de  Philosophie,"  translated  from  Latin  into  French,  at  the  request  of  Philippe  le  Bel, 
King  of  France.     Printed  at  Paris  for  Jehan  de  la  Garde,  bookseller,  in  1.514. 


human  language,  is  called  God.  This  dcclaraticin  caii.sed  great  scandal ;  tlio 
author  of  it  was  accused  of  blasphemy  again.st  the  Divine  Persons,  and  was 
cited  to  appear  before  an  ecclesiastical  tribunal  at  Rheims  (1148),  and  answer 
the  accusation  which  was  sustained  by  St.  Bernard.  He  not  only  exjiressed 
his  regret  at  having  unwittingly  propagated  perilous  doctrines,  but  he 
retracted    them  and    abjured   his   errors.      St.   Bernard    insisted    that    tliese 


52 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


doctrines  should  be  solemnly  condemned,  declaring  that  they  were  culpable, 
inasmuch  as  they  might  have  troubled  innocent  consciences  (Fig.  39). 

In  spite  of  the  perils  which  the  abuse  of  reasoning  might  entail  upon  the 
faith,  Peter,  surnamed  the  Lombard,  who  was  Bishop  of  Paris  in  1159, 
furnished  abundant  material  for  his  controversy  in  his  book  "  Les  Sentences," 


Fig.  40.— Plenary  Court  of  Dame  Justice.— An  Allegory  referring  to  Book  V.  of  Aristotle's 
"Ethics."  Upon  the  pendants  are  inscribed  "Fortitude,"  "Private  Justice,"  "Legal 
Justice,"  " Mansuetudo,"  " Eutrepelie,"  "Distributive  Justice,"  "Commutative  Justice." — 
Miniature  of  a  Manuscript  of  the  Fourteenth  Century. — Burgundy  Library,  Brussels. 

a  vast  collection  of  extracts  from  the  writings  of  the  fathers  on  the  principal 
points  of  metaphysics  and  Christian  moralit}\  The  aiithor  obtained  the  name 
of  Maitre  cks  Seiifeiiccs,  and  his  work  became  the  basis  of  theological  teaching, 
and  no  other  work,  perhaps,  except  the  Bible,  has  had  so  many  interpreters. 
John  of  Salisbury,  Avhoni  Louis  le  Jeuue  raised,  in  1176,  to  the  bishopric  of 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES.  53 

Chartres,  had  attended   in  his  youth    all  the  principal  masters  of  his  time, 
and  had  not  attached  himself  to  any  of  their  schools.     A  man   of  reiined 
mind,  a  gifted  writer,  a  great  admirer  of  antiquit}',  he  had  no  inclination  for 
the  frigid  subtleties  of  the  logicians  of  his  day,  and  though  he  was  animated  , 
by  a  sincerely  religious  faith,  he  inclined  towards  scepticism  in  philosophy. 

The  abuses  of  dialectics  encountered  a  fierce  opposition  from  two  monks  of 
the  Abbey  of  St.  Victor,  Hugh,  and  Richard,  his  disciple,  both  of  whom 
were  familiar  with  the  profane  sciences,  and,  to  a  certain  extent,  friends  of 
philosophy,  but  both  the  declared  adversaries  of  arid  speculations,  and 
partisans  of  that  method  which  raises  us  to  God  less  by  the  light  of  the  mind 
than  b}'  that  of  the  heart,  less  by  reason  than  by  faith  and  love.  They  were, 
in  the  twelfth  centurj-,  the  representatives  of  Catholic  mj-sticism. 

At  that  time,  however,  Christian  Europe  had  not  got  bej'ond  the  logical 
works  of  Aristotle  ;  but  at  the  close  of  the  twelfth  century  the  "  Ph}'sics,"  the 
"Metaphj'sics,"  and  the  "Ethics  "  of  that  great  philosopher  travelled  westward. 
They  found  their  way  into  the  Catholic  Universities  in  Latin  translations,  some 
from  the  Greek  text,  others  from  the  Arabic  version  which  had  long  been 
employed  in  the  Mahometan  schools.  To  these  translations  must  be  added 
the  commentaries  from  the  pens  of  Arab  writers.  The  unlooked-for  appear- 
ance of  these  monuments  of  the  philosophical  genius  of  Greece  and  of  the 
East  made  a  profound  impression  upon  men's  minds.  Some  men  lost  their 
heads,  such  as  Amaury  de  Bene,  David  of  Dinant,  and  their  disciples,  a  great 
nurnber  of  whom  perished  at  the  stake,  victims  of  their  errors  and  of  the  alami 
they  had  caused  in  the  ranks  of  Christian  society.  Others,  more  circumspect, 
more  attached  to  tradition,  endeavoured  to  turn  to  the  profit  of  religion 
these  treatises  and  commentaries,  hitherto  unknown,  which  had  enriched  the 
literature  of  the  AVest.  They  sought  to  discover  in  them  truths  which  the 
Church  was  accustomed  to  teach,  and  which  they  set  to  woik  to  ad\"ocate 
(Fig.  40).  The  "Physics"  and  "Metaphysics,"  first  of  all  jiroscribcd,  gradually 
became,  for  the  most  pious  of  the  doctors,  subjects  of  assiduous  study  and  the 
source  from  which  they  drew  a  part  of  their  doctrines.  Alexander  of  JIales, 
sumamed  the  Ii-rcfuiahlo  Doctor,  who  died  in  1245,  was  one  of  the  most  able 
interjireters  of  the  philosophy  of  Aristotle.  After  him,  William  of 
Auvergne,  who  had  studied  the  philosophers  of  the  Neo-Platonist  school  of 
Alexandria  and  the  Arab  philosophers,  employed  his  theological  erudition  in 
combating  the  erroneous  consequences  which  the  modern  partisans  of  these 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIEA-CES. 


Fig.  41.— The  Hour  of  Death.— Allegoric  Miniature  placed  at  the  beginning  of  the  Service  for 
the  Dead  in  a  "Liber  Horarum."— Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century.— The  Library  of 
M.  Ambroise  Fixmin-Didot. 

The  sinner,  at  the  point  of  death,  mth  his  sins  staring  him  in  the  face,  turns  away  from 
them  to  listen,  but  too  late,  to  the  advice  of  his  good  angel ;  his  conscience,  black  with  his 
faults,  reminds  him  of  them  all,  and  remorse  like  a  serpent  is  devouring  his  heart.  He 
remains  suspended  bet-n-een  hell,  a  monster  vomiting  flames  and  awaiting  his  prey,  and  God, 
■who  with  his  right  hand  threatens  him  with  his  justice,  and  with  his  left  expresses  his  desire 
to  show  mercy. 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIEXCES.  55 

pliilosojjhers  had  drawn  from  their  doctrine.  He  was  raised  to  the  see  of  Paris, 
which  he  occujiied  until  his  death  (1249);  and  his  episcopacj^  which  did 
honour  to  the  Church,  also  rendered  good  service  to  the  cause  of  sound 
philosophy. 

Another  doctor  of  that  time,  Jean  de  la  Rochelle,  who  acknowledged 
Avicenna  as  his  master,  wrote  a  '"Treatise  on  the  .Soul,"  which  ranks  as  one 
of  the  principal  monuments  of  philosophy  in  the  thirteenth  century. 

The  appearance  of  a  man  not  less  remarkable  for  his  genius  than  for  his 
learning,  and  who  renewed  and  extended  the  course  of  teaching  by  intro- 
ducing into  it  the  exjjerimental  study  of  nature,  was  Albertus  Magnus,  whose 
reputation  spread  through  France,  Germany,  and  Italy.  Born  at  Lauingen, 
in  Swabia,  in  1193,  and  belonging  to  an  old  family  in  that  country,  he  com- 
menced his  studies  at  Padua ;  and  from  thence  he  proceeded  to  the  schools  of 
Bologna  and  Paris,  in  order  to  perfect  himself  in  all  the  sciences  b}'  attending 
the  lectures  of  the  best  master.s.  At  the  age  of  twenty-nine  he  joined  the 
Order  of  St.  Dominic,  and  was  immediately  commissioned  b}-  his  superiors  to 
go  and  teach  j^hilosophy  in  the  Dominican  house  at  Cologne.  He  returned 
to  Paris  in  1228,  and  was  received  Doctor.  There  he  opened,  at  the 
Monastery  of  the  Preaching  Brothers  in  the  Eue  St.  Jacques,  a  public  course 
of  lectures,  which  inaugurated  the  success  of  the  Dominican  school.  "  From 
all  parts,"  saj's  M.  Haureau,  "jjeople  flocked  to  his  lectures,  and  the  students 
would  not  listen  to  anybody  but  this  insignificant-looking  man,  worn  to  a 
skeleton  by  study,  but  for  whom,  as  it  seemed,  neither  heaven  nor  earth  had 
any  secrets  ;  whose  learning  was,  compared  with  that  of  others,  like  the  light 
of  the  sun  to  the  flickering  fires  of  a  burnt-out  lamp ;  and  whose  eloquence 
ravi-shed  all  who  heard  him,  commimicating  to  them  the  divine  passion  for 
knowledge."  Ajopointed  Provincial  of  the  Dominicans  in  Germany,  Albert 
was  compelled  to  abandon  his  teaching  in  order  to  visit  the  monasteries  of 
his  order,  traveUing  on  foot,  and  subsisting  on  ahus.  He  had  the  good 
fortune  to  discover  in  the  libraries  of  these  monasteries  several  ancient  works 
which  he  had  thought  lost  :  he  had  them  copied  out  under  his  own  eyes,  and 
thus  saved  many  precious  relics  of  Latin  antiquity.  He  was  .summoned  to 
Rome  by  Pope  Alexander  IV.,  who  conferred  upon  him  the  freedom  of  the 
sacred  palace,  and  soon  afterwards  raised  him  to  the  episcopacy.  But 
Albert,  after  holding  the  bishopric  of  Ratisbon  for  three  years,  resigned  his 
charge  in  order  to  resume  his  favourite  studies,  and  returned  to  the  monastery 


S6 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


of  the  Dominicans  at  Cologne,  .vhere  he  opened  a  fresh  course  of  teachmg. 
His  contemporaries  surnaxned  him  the  JJ^.kersal  Doctor ;  and  when  he  died  m 
1280  aced  eighty-seven,  he  left  behind  him  countless  works  upon  every 
branch  o'f  human  learning-amongst  others,  some  voluminous  commentaries 

on  all  the  books  of  Aristotle. 

Albertus  Magnus  has  erroneously  been  classed  amongst  the  realists ;  he 
belonged  rather  to  the  nominalists,  having  declared  in  favour  of  the  doctrine 
of  Abelard  upon  the  principal  questions  which  excited  the  controversy  of 
the  schools.  Thus,  far  from  considering  the  kinds  and  species  as  substances, 
he  looked  upon  them  as  essential  modes,  as  manners  of  being  inherent  in  the 


Fif 


,  42.— Seal  of  the  Faculty  of  Theology 
of  Paris  (Fourteenth  Century). 


Fig.  43.— Counter-Seal  of  the  University 
of  Paris  (Fourteenth  Century). 


substance  of  individuals.  He  defined,  after  the  fashion  of  the  nominalists, 
the  things  which  are  the  object  of  empirical  research ;  that  is  to  say,  the 
betags  which  together  make  up  the  universe.  Albertus  Magnus  was  never 
persecuted,  or  even  looked  upon  with  suspicion,  because  of  his  doctrines  ;  he 
had  the  good  sense  to  stop  short  at  the  limits  beyond  which  lay  heresy.  His 
doubts  and  indecision  began  at  the  point  where  it  was  dangerous  to  follow  up 
the  argument,  and  to  resolve  problems  which  the  Church  will  not  allow  to 
be  approached  except  \ij  the  foot  of  faith. 

These  problems  the   great  St.  Thomas  Aquinas,  the  pupil  and  contem- 
porary   of   Albertus    Magnus,    brought,   so   to    speak,  within    the   limits   of 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


57 


orthodoxy,  and,  starting  from  well-uiidorstood  jjrinciplos,  deduced  from  tliem 
their    ultimate    coiiscqueuces  by   the  superioritj^   of    his  dialectical  method. 
This  method  enabled  him  to  range  his  opinions  and  judgments  in  logical  order, 
and  at  the  same  time  saved  him  from  taking  a  single  step  in  the  direction 
of  heresj^     His  "  Somme  de  Theologie  "  and  his  "  Somme  centre  les  Gentils  " 
rank  -with  the  most  remarkable  productions  of  human  genius.       The  i^recision 
and  surety  'with  which  the  author  of  these  two  works  maintained  his  balance 
amidst  the  mazes  of  the  questions  involved  are  something  marvellous.       8t. 
Thomas  Aquinas  was  born  at  Naples  in  1227,  upon  the  territory  of  Aquino, 
from  which  he  derived  his  name,  and  he  was  only  thirteen  j'ears  of  age  when 
he  comjileted  his  studies  at  the  school  of  Naples.       The  Preaching  Brothers 
of  that  city  induced  him  to  join  their  order,  notwithstanding  the  efforts  of 
his   family,  which  was  both   noble   and  inflnential,  to  make  him    adojat   a 
judicial  or  diplomatic  career.      After  taking  the  vows,  he  was  sent  first  to 
Paris,  and  afterwards  to  Cologne,  where  he  attended  the  lectures  of  Albertus 
Magnus.     Thomas  was  of  a  pensive  and  dreamy  disposition,  talking  little, 
and  avoiding  argument  and  dispute.       His  fellow-pupils  nicknamed  him  the 
"  Dumb  ox  of  Sicily."      His  master  had  one  day  occasion  to  question  him 
upon  several  intricate  matters  in  the  presence  of  a  numerous  audience,  and 
Thomas  Aquinas  answered  him  with  remarkable  boldness  and  accuracy.   Albert, 
turning  with  delight  towards  the  audience,  which  had  listened  in  silence  to 
the  able  answers  of  the  young  Neapolitan,  said,   "  You  call  Thomas  a  duml) 
ox,  but  the  da}'  will  come  when  the  lowings  of  his  doctrine  will  be  heard 
all  over  the  world."       Thomas,  eager  to  learn  and  study,  returned  to  Paris, 
and  again  became  a  student  in  the  house  of  the  Dominican  Friars  in  the  Piue 
8t.  Jacques ;  but  at  the  expiration  of  three  years  he  was  recalled  to  Cologne 
by  his  esteemed  master,  with  whom  he  studied  for  another  four  years  sciences 
of  all  kinds,  sacred  science  in  particular.     In  124S,  when  Albertus  became  the 
Provincial  of  his  order  in  Germany,  Thojnas  returned  to  Paris,  to  the  house 
m  the  Hue  St.  Jacques  where  he  had  already  learnt  so  many  useful  lessons, 
and  it  was  there  that  he  completed  his  theological  studies  by  a  coniiuciitary 
on  Pierre  Lombard's  "  Sentences."     After  being  received  Doctor,  he  began  his 
lessons,  in  which  he  developed  with  marvellous  lucidity  the  various  parts  of 
his  "  Sum  of  Theology,"  which  became  the  basis  of  his  great  reputation.     He 
continued    his    teaching  to   large  audiences  for   many   years,   and   he   wrote 
without  intermission  a  vast  number  of  theological  treatises,  forming  altogether 

1 


PHILOSOPHIC   SCIENCES. 


eighteen  folio  volumes.  The  UniTersity  of  Paris  had  adopted  him  as  one  of 
her  sons,  and  was  proud  of  being  able  to  oto  him  as  such.  But  Charles  of 
Anjou,  King  of  Naples,  was  anxious  to  place  him  at  the  head  of  that  Univer- 
sity, and  induced  Pope  Clement  IV.  (Fig.  44)  to  recall  him  to  Italy.  Thomas 
Aquinas  reluctantly  obeyed,  for  he  was  in  declining  health,  and  afflicted  with 
premature  infirmities.  The  frequent  journeys  which  he  had  been  obliged  to 
take  in  the  interests  of  the  Church  added  to  his  fatigues,  and  while  on  his 


^. 


Fig.  44.— Portrait  of  Clement  IV.— Fresco  Painting,  on  gold  ground,  in  Mosaic,  in  the 
Basilica  of  St.  Paul--without-tlie-WalIs  at  Rome  (Thirteenth  Century). 


way  to  the  Council  of  Lyons,  in  1274,  he  was  compelled  to  break  the  journey 
near  Terracina,  at  a  Cistercian  monastery,  -s^'here  he  died,  after  a  few  days' 
illness,  at  the  age  of  forty-eight. 

Thomas  Aquinas,  whom  the  Church  afterwards  placed  amongst  her  saints, 
left  the  highest  reputation  behind  him  in  the  Paris  schools.  He  was  called 
the  Second  Sf.  Aiigiidine,  the  Angel  of  tlie  Bclwok,  the  Angelic  Doctor,  the 
Doctor  of  Doctors.  In  fact,  his  was  the  only  theology  taught  in  most  of  the 
Catholic  schocils  subsequently  to  the  thirteenth  century. 


Fig.  45  — St.  Augustine,  Bishop  of  Hippo,  wearing  the  dress  of  his  order  under  his  episcopal 
cape,  surrounded  by  monks  to  whom  he  is  giving  the  books  of  prayer.  At  his  feet  is  Aristotle, 
holding  in  his  right  hand  a  pendant  upon  which  is  written,  "Dicimus  mundum  esse  wtenmm, 
non  habere  principium,  neque  finem."  Aristotle  declares  the  eternity  of  matter,  a  doctrine 
refuted  by  St.  Augustine. — From  a  Picture  in  the  r'anipnna  JIuseuni.  —  Italian  School  of  the 
Fifteenth  Centurv. 


6o  PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


However,  the  scholastic  spirit  had  not  quenched  the  ardour  for  research, 
and  St.  Thomas,  notwithstanding  his  immense  authority,  had  more  than  one 
ojDiJOuent.  The  dispute  took  place,  it  is  true,  upon  the  ground  of  philosophy, 
between  the  Orders  of  St.  Dominic  and  St.  Francis.  Albertus  Magnus,  by 
declarino-  himself  the  enemy  of  the  realists,  had  excited  the  hostility  of  the 
Franciscans,  who  adhered  to  the  opinion  of  their  first  doctor,  Alexander  of 
Hales.  St.  Thomas,  out  of  respect  for  his  master,  Albert,  had  joined  the 
camjj  of  the  nominalists,  but  he  was  often  at  variance  with  them,  and  could 
not  follow  Albert  the  Great  in  all  his  conclusions  of  doctrine.  Thus,  not- 
withstanding his  deep  study  of  the  natural  sciences,  he  had  less  inclination 
for  physics  than  for  metaphysics,  and  his  favourite  subjects  of  discussion  were 
those  relating  to  the  spiritual  substance,  its  faculties,  its  functions,  and  its 
acts.  When  it  was  a  question  of  explaining  the  nature  of  ideas,  he  inclined 
towards  realism.  A  disciple  of  St.  Augustine,  and,  through  him,  of  Plato, 
he  held  that  ideas  are  distinct  forms,  which  exist  in  permanency  in  the  Divine 
intellect ;  they  are,  according  to  him,  substantial  entities  forming  part  of 
a  world  which  is  the  pattern  of  the  external  and  the  intellectual  world 
(Fig.  45). 

The  philosophical  doctrine  of  St.  Thomas  Aquinas  was  not  attacked  in 
earnest  until  after  his  death,  though  the  questions  were  mooted  while  he  was 
alive.  Henry  of  Ghent  and  Roger  Bacon  had  warmly  espoused  the  cause  of 
the  Franciscans  and  the  doctrine  of  Alexander  of  Hales,  which  was  pure 
realism.  St.  Bonaventure  (Fig.  46),  who  died  at  about  the  same  time  as 
St.  Thomas  Aquinas,  had  waged  war  more  against  rationalism  than  nomi- 
nalism. He  belonged  to  the  Order  of  St.  Francis,  and  he  had  certain  mystic 
tendencies,  urging  his  hearers  to  avoid  the  schools  and  despise  science.  The 
detractors  of  philosophy  ranged  themselves  to  the  banner  of  John  of  Wales, 
who  was  also  a  Franciscan ;  and  this  was  not  the  only  defection  in  their 
ranks,  for  Eichard  of  Middleton  professed  nominalism  at  the  University  of 
Paris,  but  he  met  a  stout  adversary  in  William  of  Lamarre,  who  advocated 
the  Franciscan  doctrine  against  the  Dominicans.  And  so  the  struggle  went 
on.  The  best  supporter  of  the  doctrine  of  St.  Thomas  was  his  pupil  and 
folb.nv-couutrynian,  Egidio  Colonna,  who  acquired  in  this  war  of  the  schools 
the  curious  nickname  of  Bodor  fimdamentamm,  his  partisans  having 
ascribed  to  him  the  honom-  of    having  laid  the  foundation    of   nominalist 


PHIL  OSOPIIIC   SCIENCES. 


6i 


The  Franciscans  got  the  best  of  the  dispute,  under  the  leadership  of  one 
of  the  most  celebrated  masters  of  liis  time,  the  formidable  opponent  of  the 


Fig.  4C.— St.   Boiicnenturf. — From  a  Fresco  Painting  by  John  of   Florence,  in   the   Chapel  of 
Nicholas  V.  at  the  Vatican  (Fifteenth  Century). 


school  of  St.  Thomas.     This  was  the  douglity  Duns  Scotus,  who  was  surnamed 
the  Subtle  Doctor,  and  whom  the  h'ranci.scans  called  the  Column,  the  Torch, 


62  PHILOSOPHIC  SCIEXCES. 

the  erer-shining  Star  of  Science.  He  was  born  in  1274,  in  the  British  Isles — 
in  England  according  to  some,  in  Ireland  according  to  others ;  but  the  pro- 
bability is,  as  his  name  implies,  that  he  was  Scotch.  He  donned  the  garb  of 
St.  Francis  before  going  to  study  at  ITerton  College,  Oxford,  and  his  talents 
at  first  lav  in  the  direction  of  mathematics.  But  he  soon  filled  the  chair  of 
philosophy  in  the  college  where  he  had  completed  his  classes,  and  thousands 
of  pupils  assembled  to  hear  him  (Fig.  47).  He  studied  theology,  and 
obtained  his  doctor's  degree  at  Paris,  and  the  superior  of  the  Franciscans 
sent  him  to  Cologne,  where  he  taught  both  theology  and  philosophy.  He 
died  in  1308,  at  the  early  age  of  thii'ty-four,  lea-^-ing  behind  him  an  enormous 
mass  of  philosophical  treatises,  which  were  not  collated  till  the  seventeenth 
centuiy,  when  they  were  published  in  twenty-five  folio  volumes. 

Albertus  ilagnus  had  sought  in  natural  philosophy  the  fundamental  basis 
of  knowledge,  and  St.  Thomas  thought  that  it  was  to  be  found  in  theologj', 
while  Dims  Scotus  endeavoured  to  trace  it  back  to  logic.  According  to  him, 
svlloijism  is  the  sole  rule  of  certaintv.  But,  as  M.  Haureau  remarks,  starting: 
from  this  principle,  the  journey  is  full  of  perils.  Duns  Scotus,  in  fact, 
was  very  near  falliug  into  them,  and  onlj"  escaped  by  taking  refuge  behind 
the  quibbles  of  sophistry.  He  was,  nevertheless,  a  firm  believer  and  full 
of  piety,  and  it  was  from  his  ardour  in  dialectics  that  he  was  led  to  uphold 
the  most  extreme  ^"iews  of  the  realists.  In  his  researches  into  the  distinct 
nature  of  every  compound,  he  endeavoured  to  extract  from  it  the  various 
qualities  which  he  found  inherent  in  or  adherent  to  the  same  subject.  In  this 
way  he  looked  upon  matter  separated  from  all  form,  fomi  separated  from  all 
matter,  or  merely  matter  separated  fi-om  certain  forms,  and  at  the  same  time 
united  to  certain  others.  Each  of  these  notions,  each  of  these  distinct 
conceptions,  he  made  to  correspond  with  a  nature,  an  .existence  of  its  own- 
It  was  to  obscure  and  intangible  lucubrations  such  as  these  that  scholasticism 
devoted  voluminous  treatises,  which  led  to  passionate  discussion,  and  which 
were  the  main  subject  of  conversation  amongst  the  students  while  they  were 
pacing  up  and  down  the  Pre-aux-Clercs  (Fig.  47). 

The  champions  of  St.  Thomas  and  Duns  Scotus  was'ed  war  against  each 
other  for  several  centuries  in  the  vague  domain  of  obscure  abstractions. 
Alexander  of  Hales  was  superseded  by  Duns  Scotus,  as  represented  by  his 
disciples  and  followers,  ^-iz.  Francois  de  Mayronis  (surnamed  the  Enlightened 
Doctor),  Antonio  Andrea,  John  Bassolius,  and  Pietro  d'Aquila  (Fig.  48).     The 


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II 


64  PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 

Dominicans  did  not  give  up  the  contest,  and  St.  Thomas  had  many  fervent 
and  eloquent  successors.  "  In  order  to  avoid  being  accused  of  betraj'ing 
their  cause,"  says  M.  Haureau,  "  all  Franciscans  were  obliged  to  declare 
against  St.  Thomas,  and  all  Dominicans  against  Dvms  Scotus.  The  few 
exceptions  were  denounced  as  schismatics.  Thus,  for  instance,  Pierre 
d'Auriol,  surnamed  in  the  University  of  Paris  the  Eloquent  Dorfor,  was, 
although  a  Franciscan,  one  of  the  nominalists.  A  dialectician  of  the  first 
rank,  he  attacked  without  mercy  psychological  realism  in  St.  Thomas, 
and  did  not  spare  the  natural  species,  the  image-ideas  of  his  school.  This 
fierce  controversy,  which  indirectly  attacked  the  doctrine  of  Duns  Scotus, 
caused  great  excitement  in  the  ranks  of  the  realists,  most  of  whom  belonged 
to  the  Order  of  Franciscans.  Upon  the  other  hand,  the  secession  of  Durand 
de  St.  Pourcain,  called  the  Veri/  Romhife  Doctor,  who,  while  professing 
philosophy,  forgot  that  he  was  a  Dominican  and  upheld  the  doctrines  of 
Duns  Scotus,  was  a  gain  to  the  Franciscans.  M.  Haureau  says,  "  From  this 
epoch,  the  fact  of  belonging  to  one  particular  order  in  religion  ceased  to 
imply  implicit  obedience  to  any  one  jjhilosophical  sect ;  the  ties  of  discipline 
were  loosened,  and  though  the  two  schools  still  existed,  each  individual  took 
up  the  position  which  seemed  best  in  his  own  eyes." 

It  was  from  England,  once  more,  that  came  the  next  celebrity  of  scholas- 
ticism. AVilliam  of  Ockham,  born  in  the  town  from  which  he  took  his 
name,  was  a  pupil  of  Duns  Scotus,  and  proved  worthy  of  his  great  master, 
After  having  passed  his  youth  with  the  Dominican  Friars  at  Guildford,  he 
repaired  to  Paris,  where  he  found  more  scope  for  expounding  his  doctrine  of 
nominalism.  At  first  he  had  upheld  the  realist  doctrines  of  his  master, 
but  the  force  of  logic  drove  him  into  the  ojjposite  camp.  His  system  is  best 
described  in  the  words  of  M.  Haureau,  who  says  that  William' of  Ockham, 
by  an  analysis  of  the  faculty  of  knowledge,  saw  that  it  was  seconded  by  the 
intuitive,  which  we  call  perception,  and  by  the  abstractive,  which  ^ye  call 
abstraction.  With  these  two  energies  correspond  the  simple  ideas  which 
the  vie^^'  of  tangible  objects  affords  us,  and  the  compound  ideas  which 
the  intelligence  forms  by  comparison,  by  abstraction.  William  of  Ockham 
further  demonstrated  that  the  realists,  having  misapprehended  human  intelli- 
gence in  its  manner  of  being  and  its  manner  of  action,  had  fallen  into  a  pro- 
found error  in  their  definition  of  Divine  InteUigence.  God  is  the  name  of  the 
mystery;  everybody  can    see  and  judge  his  works;  nobody  can   appreciate 


HE  RESURRECTION  OF  THE  DEAD  AND  THE  WEIGHING  OF  SOUI.S  IN  THE  BALANCE, 

AT  THE  LAST  JUDGMENT. 

Mitiialure  Ir'nn  Uio  Psoller  oC  St  Louis ,  M.S.  of  tlio  xiii"'  cpnturj ,  forming  part  of  the  treasure  in  the 
ablji-y  of  Poissy;  n"  117  T.  L.  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIE.XCES. 


65 


the  nature  of  God.  Realism,  therefore,  has  committed  a  grave  and  dangerous 
error  in  attempting  to  exjjlain  the  nature  of  Divine  ideas.  God  imagined 
the  world  before  creating  it :  St.  Augustine  has  stated  this  ;  but  is  it  necessary 
to  go  an}'  further.''  Why  people  the  thought  of  God  with  efr/ni'iiftt,  and 
ii)tc//ir/ib/cf!,  and  spiritual  atoms  ?  To  credit  God  himself  with  all  these 
imaginary  things,  does  not  this  imply  the  placing  of  limits  and  bounds  upon 
his  omnipotent  will,  and  submitting  Him,  by  analogy,  to  the  same  conditions 


Fig.  48. — Italian  Doctors  (Fifteenth  Centurj-). — Miniature  of  "  The  Life  of  St.  Catherine  of 
Sienna." — Manuscript  in  the  Paris  National  Library. 


as  his  creatures?  Is  it  becoming  to  reduce  the  nature  of  God  to  a  concep- 
tion derived  from  experience,  fonned  by  human  reason,  representing  a  sum  of 
qualities  abstract  from  things,  but  not  defining  the  pure  essence  of  God, 
inasmuch  as  that  mysterious  essence  e.scajoes  by  its  verj'  nature  all  the  investi- 
gations of  intuitive  energy  ?  Such  was  the  principal  thesis  of  William  of 
Ockham,  who  was  the  most  thorough-going  interin'cter  of  nominalism  duiing 
the  Middle  Ages. 


66  PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


This  o-reat  doctor  was  not  attacked  by  the  Sorbonne,  though  he  had  many 
formidable  adversaries,  but  his  attitude  towards  the  Papacy,  with  reference  to 
the  dispute  between  Philippe  le  Bel  and  Boniface  VIIL,  marked  him  out  for 
the  resentment  and  vengeance  of  the  Court  of  Eome.  He  had  sided  with 
the  French  king,  and  was  well  seconded  by  Michael  de  Cesene,  General  of  the 
Franciscans,  when  he  continued  his  aggressive  attacks  against  John  XXII. 
and  the  Papal  power.  The  Pope  resented  the  attack,  not  so  much  in  his 
individual  capacity  as  in  that  of  Vicar  of  Christ,  and  he  summoned  William 
of  Ockham  and  Michael  de  Cesene  to  Avignon,  where  the  Holy  See  had  fixed 
its  residence  during  the  establishment  of  an  antipope  at  Eome.  The  two 
Franciscans,  having  obeyed  the  order,  were  cast  into  prison,  and  their  trial  bid 
fair  to  result  in  summary  punishment ;  but  they  managed  to  escape  to  Aigues- 
Mortes,  where  they  were  received  on  board  a  vessel  belonging  to  Louis  of  Bavaria. 
Welcomed  by  him,  they  ended  their  days  in  obscurity  within  his  dominions. 

The  doctrine  of  WiUiam  of  Ockham  survived  him  in  the  schools,  and  the 
doctors  who  endeavoured  to  oppose  it  had  few  followers.  Walter  Burleigh 
himself,  notwithstanding  his  courageous  endeavours  to  revive  the  cause  of 
realism,  could  not  secure  any  attention.  The  nominalists  were  everywhere 
the  most  numerous  and  the  most  zealous.  Their  masters  were  esteemed  doctors, 
doughty  dialecticians,  evangelic  and  zealous  party  leaders  ;  such  as  Robert 
Holcot,  Thomas  of  Strasburg,  Jean  Buridan,  and  Pierre  d'Ailly.  Most  of 
them  were  professors,  and  their  teaching  acquired  them  influence  and  renown. 
Above  all  these  discordant  doctrines  there  rose  the  venerable  voice  of 
Jean  Charlier  de  Gerson,  Chancellor  of  the  University  of  Paris,  who,  pro- 
testing against  the  abuses  of  dialectics,  said,  "  Let  us  put  an  end  to  frivolous 
disputes  ;  let  us  make  use  of  Reason  solely  in  order  to  arrive  at  the  truth, 
which  it  cannot  do  without  the  aid  of  Faith.  It  is  the  rule  of  Faith  that  we 
need  follow,  and  if  some  refractory  or  stubborn  minds  stiU  cling  to  the 
quibbles  of  philosophy,  let  us  deplore  their  being  led  astray,  and  hmnbly  seek 
in  the  bosom  of  the  Church,  far  from  the- schools,  peace,  light,  and  life." 
This  touching  appeal,  by  one  who  weR  deserved  the  title  of  Evangelical  and 
Very  C/irisfian  Doctor,  for  a  return  to  mystic  theology  (Fig.  49)  did  not  find 
an  echo  in  many  minds  ;  it  did  not  prevent  the  young  from  being  led  away  in 
the  heat  of  dialectics,  and  siding  with  the  philosophers  of  logic. 

But  all  these  systems,  springing  from  logic  pursued  to  its  final  limits, 
were  destined  to  faU  of  themselves,  involving  in  their  ruin  that  of  nearly  aU 


Fig.  49. — Miniature  of  the  "  City  of  God,"  by  St.  Augustine,  triinslatcd  by  Eaoul  de  Presks. — Manuscript 
of  the  Fifteenth  Century.  St.  Genevieve  Library. — The  upper  enclosure  represents  the  saints  who  have 
been  already  received  into  heaven  ;  the  seven  lower  enclosures  represent  those  who  are  projjaring  them- 
selves, by  the  exercise  of  Christian  virtues,  for  the  heavenly  kingdom,  or  who  are  excluding  themselves 
from  it  by  committing  one  or  other  of  the  seven  capital  sins. 


68  PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


their  champions.  The  triumph  of  nominalism  completed  the  discomfiture 
of  scholasticism,  which  was  no  longer  so  popular  in  the  Universities,  and 
which  was  o-radually  being  confined  to  the  cloisters.  It  may  be  added  that 
the  struo-o-le  between  the  rival  schools  was  much  abated  by  the  discovery  of 
printino- ;  for,  owing  to  this  invention,  which  was  called  divine,  the  works  of 
ancient  philosojDhy,  which  had  been  used  as  texts  for  the  oral  teaching  of  the 
professors,  became  multiplied  amongst  the  friends  of  science.  These  printed 
books,  making  their  way  everywhere,  were  calculated  to  take  the  place  of  the 
lessons  which  students  had  previously  come  to  learn  at  the  Universities  famous 
for  the  ability  of  their  masters  of  dialectics.  As  M.  Haureau  very  justly 
observes,  "Before  the  invention  of  printing,  students  learnt  the  lessons  of 
science  from  one  master,  and  nearly  always  became  his  partisans  :  to  quit  one 
school  for  another  required  no  common  degree  of  courage.  But  afterwards 
students  were  enabled,  before  making  their  choice,  to  weigh  the  merits  of  ten 
masters  at  a  time."  These  masters  were  the  books  issued  from  the  presses  in 
every  country  of  Euro2:)e  (Fig.  51). 

The  philosophy  of  the  Renaissance  was  just  coming  into  existence  when  the 
fugitive  Greeks,  after  the  capture  of  Constantinople  by  the  Turks,  imported 
into  Italy  manuscripts  containing  the  works  of  Plato  and  of  philosophers  of 
the  Alexandrian  school.  These  works,  which  it  was  believed  had  been  lost, 
and  of  which  only  a  vague  recollection  had  been  preserved  by  tradition,  were 
welcomed  in  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century  with  even  more  respect  and 
enthusiasm  than  the  books  of  Aristotle  had  been  in  the  twelfth  century. 
The  comparison  of  ancient  philosophy  with  the  scholasticism  of  the  more 
modern  schools  was  not  to  the  advantage  of  the  latter,  which  seemed  too 
narrow,  too  obscure,  and  too  servile.  The  writings  of  Plato  gave  a  better 
idea  of  the  opinions  of  Heraclitus  and  Pythagoras,  and  opened  new  vistas  to 
many  minds  which  were  eager  to  shake  off  all  bonds,  and  to  emerge  from  the 
paths  in  which  theology  had  been  guiding  them  for  the  last  four  or  five 
centuries  (Fig.  50). 

This  period  of  philosophical  renovation  began  by  a  sharp  discussion 
between  two  Grecian  philosophers  of  Constantinople,  Gemistes  Plethon  and 
Theodores  de  Gaza :  the  first  a  fanatical  partisan  of  the  Alexandrian  school 
of  Plotinus,  the  second  a  faithful  votary  of  Aristotle.  The  old  scholasticism 
was  dead ;  the  chairs  which  it  formerly  had  at  Florence  and  the  great  cities 
of  Italy  were  tenanted  by  the  new  doctors,  who  expounded  the  principles  of 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


69 


Plato  and  Aristotle.  The  names  talked  of  in  the  schools  were  those  of 
Krmolao  Barbaro,  Angelo  Polition,  and  Lorenzo  Valla.  A  student  of  Louvain, 
Iliidolj)h  Agricola,  came  to  take  lessons  from  these  illustrious  masters,  and 
returned  to  Flanders  to  propagate  their  doctrines.  In  Spain,  as  in  France, 
these  doctrines,  taken  from  the  ancient  philosophers  of  Greece  and  of  Egj-pt, 
were  hailed  with  unanimous  enthusiasm.  The  University  of  Paris  was 
powerless  to  arrest  this  stream  of  novelties  which   the  Italian  Renaissance 


Fig.  50.— Bachelors  of  the  Faculty  of  Theology,  iiiid  Professors  of  the  Faculties  of 
Theology,  Jurisprudence,  and  Medicine  at  the  University  of  Pont-a-JIousson. — From 
the  Funeral  of  Henry  II.,  Duke  of  Lorraine,  by  Claude  de  la  Ruelle. — National 
Library,  Paris.     Cabinet  of  Engravings. 


poured  upon  the  West.     There  was  an   end   to   schools  and   to   discipline ; 
license,  anarchy,  and  confusion  reigned  supreme. 

Upon  the  one  hand,  Nicholas  de  Cusa  declared  with  Pythagoras  that 
knowledge  is  hidden  in  the  mysterious  notion  of  numbers,  and  he  went  so 
far  as  to  represent  the  Divine  Essence  as  an  luirmoiiious  centre  in  which  all 
differences  are  blended.  Upon  the  other  hand,  Marsilius  Ficinus,  who  died  in 
1499,  founded  a  Platonist  academy,  and,  under  colour  of  explaining  the  Holy 


70  PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 

Gospels,  he  worshipped  exclusively  his  divine  Plato.  Then,  again,  we  have 
the  infant  prodigy,  Jean  Pic  de  la  Mirandola,  who,  after  having  studied  all 
the  sciences  known  at  that  time,  and  after  having,  at  the  age  of  three-and- 
twenty,  argued  the  thesis  "  De  omni  re  scibili,"  endeavoured  to  reconcile  the 
philosophy  of  Aristotle  and  Plato  by  the  aid  of  wild  cabalistic  and  astro- 
logical evocations.  This  was  the  origin  of  a  new  school  of  cabalists, 
magicians,  and  astrologers.  They  were,  no  doubt,  consummate  men  of 
learning,  those  Germans  and  Italians  (Fig.  52),  who  sought  to  bring  to  the 
light  of  day  the  material  and  immaterial  arcana  of  nature.  Thus,  Jean 
Reuchlin  associated  in  his  writings  cabalism  and  scholasticism.  George  of 
Venice  held  that  in  the  mysteries  of  generation  and  of  life  substance  is  the 
unique  and  absolute  being,  the  only  God.  Theophrastus  Paracelsus,  who  is 
no  other  than  Philip  Bombastes  of  Hohenheim,  mixing  metaphysics  with 
physics  like  two  medical  substances,  affirmed  that  God,  of  whom  he  made  the 
principle  of  universal  life,  has  united  the  body  and  the  soul  by  an  animal 
fluid.  There  was  a  wide  interval  between  these  vain  musings  and  the  safe 
doctrine  of  St.  Thomas  Aquinas,  or  the  dialectical  abstractions  of  Duns  Scotus. 

Aristotle  still  had  followers  who  alleged  that  they  remained  faithful  to 
his  doctrine,  but  the  general  tendency  of  the  time  carried  them  over  the 
precipice.  Peter  Pomponacius  of  Mantua  (born  in  1462,  died  in  1526) 
announced  that  he  took  his  stand  upon  peripateticism,  but  he  raised  a  very 
dangerous  question  by  inquiring  whether  or  not  Aristotle  admitted  the 
principle  of  the  immortality  of  the  soul.  He  concluded  in  the  negative, 
adding  that  reason  and  faith  must  supplement  the  silence  of  the  master  in 
this  respect.  This  reverse  was  not  taken  any  account  of  by  his  adversaries, 
vho  reproached  him,  the  one  side  with  outraging  Aristotle,  and  denounced 
him  as  a  heretic ;  the  other  side  with  having  made  a  treacherous  use  of  the 
doctrines  of  peripateticism  to  advance  an  abominable  heresy.  Pomponacius 
had,  notwithstanding,  many  devoted  followers,  who  went  more  or  less  astray 
in  the  occult  sciences  or  in  scholasticism,  amongst  them  being  Augustine 
Niphus  of  Calabria,  and  Julius  Cajsar  Scaliger  of  Padua. 

As  to  scholasticism,  the  aberration  of  its  opponents  obtained  for  it  several 
ardent  champions.  Such  were  Thomas  de  Yio,  surnamed  Cajetan,  born  in 
1469,  who  became  cardinal,  after  having  professed  the  philosophy  of 
St.  Thomas  ;  his  pupil,  Leouicus  Thomasus  of  Venice,  who  devoted  aU  his 
energies  to  the  restoration  of  pure  logic,  which  was  neither  more  nor  less 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


than  the  doctrine  of  Aristotle  ;  James  Zabarclla  of  Padua,  who  was  fully 
versed  in  all  the  great  philosophers  of  the  thirteenth  century,  and  who  sought 
to  make  them  harmonize  with  xVristotle. 

These  in  their  turn  were  succeeded  by  the  old  Arab  commentators  of  the 
books  of  Aristotle,  Averroes  in  particular;  Achillini  of  Bologna,  and 
Zabarella  merely  reproduced  the  opinions  of  the  last  named.  But  the  most 
illustrious  of  the  new  Averroists  was  Jerome  Cardan  of  Pavia,  that  great 
genius  who,  bj^  the  elevation  to  which  he  raised  all  the  sciences,  became  the 


Fig.  51. — Dame  Philosophy. — Miniature  of  the  "Treasure,"  by  Brunette  Latini. 
Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — The  Arsenal  Library. 


wonder  of  his  century.  M.  Haureau  says  of  him,  "  This  man,  whose  mind, 
enthusiastic,  restless,  and  incapable  of  repose,  welcomed  all  doctrines  of  every 
kind,  was  the  slave  of  every  sj'stem  in  turn ;  first  wor.shipping,  then  insulting 
all  the  gods,  even  the  god  of  conscience ;  he  was  not  an  individual,  he  was  a 
whole  generation  of  philosophers."  He  had  more  play  of  mind  than  of 
judgment,  and  his  inconsiderate  ardour,  regulated  neither  by  good  sense  nor 
by  a  sincere  faith,  led  him  into  the  most  monstrous  anomalies.  Like 
Averroes   and   all   the    pantheists,  he    upheld    the   double    principle  of    the 


72  PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


unity  of  substance  and  the  unity  of  motion.  He  was  accused  of  being  an 
atheist,  but  he  dissembled  his  real  opinions  so  well  that  he  was  pensioned  by 
the  Pope,  and  died  at  Rome  (1576),  drawing  horoscopes  and  selling  elixirs. 

This  same  school  naturally  produced  several  lunatics  and  victims  of 
hallucination,  some  inclining  to  pantheism,  and  others  to  scepticism,  the 
latter  having  studied  medicine  and  the  former  scholasticism  before  they  were 
smitten  with  a  desire  to  know  and  to  define  the  essence  of  God  and  the 
essence  of  the  soul.  Andrew  Cesalpin  of  Arezzo,  who  had  been  physician  to 
Pope  Clement  VIII.,  was,  upon  good  grounds,  suspected  of  pantheism,  and 
even  of  atheism,  for  having  maintained  with  Averroes  that  God  was  not  so 
much  the  cause  as  the  substance  of  all  things.  Notwithstanding  the  errors 
contained  in  his  works,  he  escaped  all  persecution,  and  died  a  Christian  death 
at  Rome  in  1603.  But  the  imhappy  Jordano  Bruno,  a  Dominican  monk, 
was  less  fortunate  than  Andrew  Cesalpin.  Possessed  of  talents  more  prolific 
than  judicious,  endowed  with  a  brilliant  imagination,  and  carrying  his 
confidence  to  the  point  of  presumption,  Bruno,  who  had  already  been 
denounced  for  the  boldness  of  his  systems,  was  about  to  be  proceeded  against 
by  the  ecclesiastical  authorities  when  he  fled  into  Naples.  He  wandered 
from  city  to  city  during  twenty  years,  and  printed  at  London,  Paris,  and 
Franlcfort  several  philosophical  treatises,  in  which  he  attacked  both  the 
Catholic  dogma  and  the  doctrine  of  Aristotle.  His  boldness  proved  fatal  to 
him,  and,  having  the  imprudence  to  return  to  Italy,  the  Inquisition  caused 
him  to  be  arrested,  tried,  and  condemned  to  the  stake  as  a  relapsed  heretic. 
He  was  burnt  at  Rome  in  1600. 

While  the  doctrine  of  Aristotle  was  supreme  in  North  Italy,  the  schools 
of  the  kingdom  of  Naples  accorded  the  preference  to  Plato  and  to  the 
Alexandrian  philosophers;  but  whether  under  the  auspices  of  Plato  or 
Aristotle,  it  was  none  the  less  pantheism  which  reigned  everywhere  alike. 
Thus  Telesio  was  pantheist  in  his  chair  at  Cosenza ;  Patrizzi,  who  occupied 
the  chair  at  Ferrara,  was  not  only  a  pantheist,  but  came  to  profess  this 
pagan  doctrine  in  the  very  University  of  Rome.  The  great  names  of  Plato 
and  Aristotle  served  as  a  cloak  for  the  tendencies  of  their  interpreters.  The 
Inquisition  did  not  consider  itself  called  upon  to  defend  the  Church  against 
science,  for  the  apostles  of  the  Aristotelist  and  Platonist  philosophy  had  no 
part  in  the  schemes  of  the  heretical  innovators. 

It  was  necessary,  however,  to  select  a  philosophy  for  the  Lutheran  schools. 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


73 


That  of  Plato  was  rejected ;  and  Melancthon  obtained  the  adoption  of 
that  of  Aristotle,  and  himself  prei^ared,  for  the  teaching  of  philosophy  and  in 
conformity  with  Aristotelian  jirinciples,  several  elementary  works  which  were 
received  with  merited  favour.  Erasmus  (Fig.  53),  who  remained  a  Catholic 
with  Lutheran  tendencies,  also  followed  the  example  of  INIelancthon,  and 
undertook  the  translation  of  several  treatises  of  Aristotle,  revising  them  for 
the  use  of  the  Bale  school.  But  the  philosophy  of  Aristotle  took  another 
direction  and  attained  another  aim  when  carried  into  the  Netherlands.  The 
Flemish  Justus  Lipsius,  bnrn  near  Brussels  in  l-")47,  followed  in  the  wake  of 


Fig.  52.— The  Natural  Sciences  in  the  presence  of  Philosophy.— Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving 
attrihuted  to  Holbein  in  the  German  Translation  of  the  "  Consolation  of  Philosophy,"  by 
Boethius,  Augsburg  Edition,  1537,  in  folio. 


the  Stoics,  applied  their  moral  ^jhilosojihy  to  the  theories  of  periijatetieisni, 
and  did  not  separate  theology  from  philosophy.  Gaspard  Seioppius  and 
Thomas  Gataker  were  his  principal  disciples. 

France  also  had  her  share  in  these  philosophical  innovations.  She  had 
been  the  fir.st  home  of  scholasticism,  but  the  civil  and  religious  wars  of  the 
sixteenth  century  had  caused  an  almost  total  suspension  of  study.  But 
Pierre  Ramus,  more  commonly  called  La  Paniee,  liorn  in  Picardy  in  l;jL5, 
set  to  work  to  revive  the  teaching  (,f  philosoidiy,  condemning  Ai-istotle,  and 

J. 


74 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


recommending  Lis  pupils  to  read  Plato.  He  endeavoured  to  make  logic 
generally  comiDrehensible  by  freeing  it  of  sophistical  verbiage,  and  he  very 
ingeniously  made  use  of  this  new  logic  to  inculcate  in  the  minds  of  his  pupils 
the  maxims  of  the  Reformation,  for  he  was  a  Calvinist  with  fanatical 
tendencies.  He  was  cited  before  the  parliament,  not  for  his  religious 
ojjinions,  but  for  his  blasphemies  against  peripateticism,  and  though  his  trial 


"Hol^..,^ 


Fig-.  53.— Portrait  of  Erasmus,  after  a  Wood  Engraying  of  the  Sixteenth  Century. 
National  Library,  Paris.     Cahinet  of  Designs. 

was  not  of  an  inquisitorial  character,  he  was  condemned,  deprived  of  his 
professor's  chair  at  the  Royal  College,  and  compelled  to  leave  the  country. 
His  implacable  enemies,  Antonio  de  Govea,  Jacques  Charpentier,  and  others 
sa^^■  in  him  less  the  Huguenot  than  the  detractor  of  Aristotle.  Ramus,  who 
h:,d  become  the  chief  of  the  small  school  of  Ramists,  went  to  lecture  in  the 


PHFLOSOPHir  SCIEXCFS. 


75 


towns  on  the  bnnks  of  tlic  IMiine.  After  thi'ee  years'  exile  lie  retiii-ned  to 
Franee,  and  was  iiichuU'd  in  the  massacre  of  St.  Bartliolonicw.  Ilis  personal 
enemy,  Jacques  Charpentier,  of  Clermont  (in  the  Oise),  professor  of  mathe- 
matics at  the  Royal  Ciollege,  was  accused  of  having  had  him  massacred  by  his 
pupils  during  that  terrible  night. 

Plato,  notwithstanding  the  efforts  of  Ramus,  had  not  many  followers  in 
the  University  of  Paris,  where  scholasticism  endeavoured  to  regain  its  sway. 
Aristotle  continued  to   \>q  the  favourite  of  the  school,  and  his  ^jhilosophical 


Fig.  54. — Battle  of  Beggars  ami  Peasants  over  a  Barrel  of  Wine  in  the  Chapter  headed,  "  ('wni- 
ment  Iss  vices  se  combattirent  lea  uns  aux  autres  potu'  les  vivres." — Miniature  of  the  "Koi 
Modus." — Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — Burgundy  Library,  Brussels. 


predominance  was  f<istercd  by  the  decrees  of  the  Parliament  and  the  royal 
ordinances.  But  the  true  French  s])irit  was  less  in  the  direction  of  the 
.study  of  logic,  even  reformed  and  renewed,  than  in  moral  philosophy, 
especially  when  it  had  a  (endcmy  to  be  srepliral  and  sarcastic  (Fig.  04;. 
Montaigne,  at  the  clo.se  of  the  tifleeiith  ccniturv,  was,  so  to  speak,  the  founder 
of  this  philosojihy,  which  neilher  denies  nor  aflfirms  anything,  which  calls  every- 
thing   in   question,   and   makes   light    of  all    sulqccts.       Ife    was   born    at    the 


76 


PHILOSOPHIC  SCIENCES. 


Chateau  de  Montaigne,  in  the  Perigord,  upon  the  28th  of  February,  1533. 
Though  he  attended  all  the  classes  at  the  College  of  Bordeaux,  he  may  be 
said  to  have  been  self-taught,  and  to  have  become  a  philosopher  in  his  own 
way  through  his  intercourse  with  the  poets,  historians,  and  philosophers  of 
antiqiiity.  He  delighted  in  the  works  of  Seneca  and  Plutarch,  but  he  would 
not  "bite  his  nails  over  Aristotle,  the  monarch  of  modern  doctrine."  In 
after-years,  when  he  wi'ote  his  immortal  "Essays,"  he  unhesitatingly  declared 
against  the  dialectics  of  the  schools — against  every  kind  of  doctrinal  teaching. 
"  It  is  pitiable,"  he  writes,  "  that  in  our  century  philosophy  should  be,  even 
for  men  of  intelligence,  a  vain  and  fantastic  name,  which  is  without  use  or 
value  in  ojjinion  or  in  fact.  I  believe  that  sophistry,  by  choking  up  the 
approaches  to  it,  is  the  cause.  It  is  a  great  mistake  to  depict  it  as  inacces- 
sible to  children,  of  a  forbidding  countenance,  full  of  frowns,  and  fearful  to 
look  at.  Nothing  can  be  more  cheerful,  sprightly,  I  was  almost  saying- 
frolicsome."  Michael  de  Montaigne  inaugurated  in  France  the  philosophy 
of  the  libertines — that  is  to  say,  of  the  free-thinkers — different  in  some  respects 
from  that  which  Francois  Rabelais  professed,  fifty  years  before,  in  his  Panta- 
gruelic  works,  and  which  John  Calvin  denounced  as  a  pagan  doctrine,  accusing 
the  libertines  of  atheism  and  impiety.  "Scepticism,"  writes  M.  Haureau, 
"  had  the  last  word  in  this  propaganda  in  favour  of  the  sprightly  and  almost 
frolicsome  philosophy ;  and  the  J'ormg,  onl}^  too  easily  led  away  by  such 
remarks,  gladly  left,  under  the  gviidance  of  this  new  teacher,  the  arduous 
paths  of  study  to  revel  in  the  intercourse  of  poets,  and  to  turn  the  melancholy 
eyebrows  of  the  logicians  into  derision." 


Fig.  55.— Seal  of  the  Facalty  of  Theology, 
Pranrue. 


Fig.  56.— Seal  of  the  Fiiculty  of  Law, 
Pras'ue. 


MATHEMATICAL   SCIENCES. 


Ancient  Systems  of  the  PIanet;iry  World.— Ptolemy  and  Aristarclius  of  Samos.— Boethius, 
Pappus,  and  Gerbert.— Si;hools  of  Bagdad.— Mathematical  School  in  Spain,  Italy,  England, 
and  France.— Astronomical  Researches  of  the  Arabs.— Roger  Bacon  and  Master  Pierre.— 
Albertus  Magnus  and  St.  Thomas  Aquinas.— Progress  of  Mathematics.- Popes  and  Kings 
protectors  of  the  E.xact  Sciences.— The  King  of  Hungary,  Matthias  Corvinus.— Principal 
Works  composed  in  the  Fifteenth  Century.— Pic  Mirandula.— Peler  Ramus.— Tycho  Brahe 
and  Copernicus. 

S  a  proof  of  the  forward  state  of  the  exact 
sciences    in    the  Middle  Ages,    it  would  be 
sufficient  to  instance  a  Roman  basilica  or  a 
Gothic    cathedral.       What    immensity    and 
depth    of    mathematical  calculations ;    what 
knowledge  of  geometry,  statics,  and  ojDtics ; 
what  experience  and  skill  in  execution  must 
have  been   possessed  by  the  architects  and 
builders  in  hewing,  carving,  and  fitting  the 
stones,  in  raising  them  to  great  heights,    in 
constructing  enormous    towers  and    gigantic  belfries,   in   forming  the 
many  arches,  some  heavy  and  massive,  others  light  and  airy,   in  com- 
bining and  neutralising  the  thrust  of  these   arches  which  interlace  and 
hide   each   other    up    to    the    very    summit    of    the    edifice — all    as  if 
the  most  complicated    science  had  humbly    made  herself  the  servant 
px^^       of  art,  placing  no  obstacle  in  the  way  of  its  free  development ! 

From  the  commencement  of  the  ^Middle  Ages  and  henceforward, 
mathematics  were  not  so  much  the  object  of  special  and  public  teaching  as 
of  individual  and  solitary  study,  either  in  the  shade  of  the  cloisters  or  amidst 
associations  of  artisans  who  zealously  preserved  the  traditions  of  their 
predecessors. 

In  the  University  centres,  as  in  the  Arab  and  Jewish  .schools  which  had 


78  MATHEMATICAL   SCIENCES. 

so  much  imiDortance,  practical  science  was  generally  made  subordinate  to 
speculative  science.  Thus  the  theory  of  the  calculus,  the  formulae  of 
algebra,  the  projections  of  lines  through  space,  the  problems  of  triangulation, 
were  by  preference  applied  to  astronomical  observations,  so  that  the  tran- 
scendental mathematics  were  always  inseparable  from  astronomy. 

It  was  as  follows  that  Claudius  Ptolemteus,  a  Greek  or  Egyptian  astro- 
nomer, '  constituted  the  mundane  system  in  a  "  Cosmography "  written  in 
Greek,  which  became  one  of  the  bases  of  mathematical  and  astronomical 
science  in  the  Middle  Ages  : — "  The  world  is  divided  into  two  vast  regions  ; 
the  one  ethereal,  the  other  elementary.  The  ethereal  region  begins  with  the 
first  mover,  which  accomplishes  its  journey  from  east  to  west  in  twenty-four 
hours ;  ten  skies  participate  in  this  motion,  and  their  totality  comprises  the 
double  crystalline  heaven,  the  firmament,  and  the  seven  planets."  According 
to  Ptolemseus,  the  double  crystalline  heaven  was  placed  between  the  first 
mover  and  the  firmament.  The  elementary  region,  comprising  the  four 
elements  of  fire,  air,  water,  and  earth,  reigned  beneath  the  cavity  of  the  sky, 
and  was  subject  to  the  influence  of  the  moon.  The  terrestrial  globe, 
composed  of  earth  and  water,  existed  motionless  in  the  centre  of  the  world, 
and  was  surrounded  by  the  element  of  air,  in  which  was  mingled  that  of  fire. 

This  system  was  not,  however,  exclusive^  adopted  by  all  the  philosophers. 
Some  of  them  accorded  their  preference  to  the  system  of  Aristarchus  of 
Samos,  who  did  not  place  the  earth  in  the  centre  of  the  world,  and  who 
attributed  to  it  a  rotary  motion  aroimd  the  sun,  which  was  suspended  motion- 
less amidst  the  planets  and  the  planetary  circles.  According  to  Aristarchus 
of  Samos,  Mercury,  the  planet  which  is  nearest  the  sun,  completed  his  motion 
around  it  in  three  months,  whilst  Venus  took  seven  months  and  a  half  to 
execute  hers.  The  earth,  apart  from  its  motion  round  the  sun  in  the  space 
of  a  year,  effected  a  second  motion,  revolving  upon  its  own  axis,  in  the  space 
of  twenty-four  hours,  thus  causing  the  succession  of  day  and  night.  The 
monthly  motion  of  the  moon  aroimd  the  earth  was  accomplished  in  about 
twenty-seven  days.  The  fourth  planet.  Mars,  took  two  years  to  accomplish 
his  revolution  round  the  sun;  Jupiter,  much  farther  distant,  took  twelve 
years,  and  Saturn  thirty. 

The  system  of  Ptolemy  eventually  triumphed  over  that  of  Aristarchus, 
and  at  the  close  of  the  fifth  century  the  great  Boethius  (Fig.  57),  the  favourite 
minister   of  Tlicodoric  the  Great,  who  loved  and  patronised  literature  and 


MA  THE  MA  TIC  A  L    SCIENCES. 


79 


science,  made  a  Latin  translation  of  the  "  Cosmography,"  to  which  he  appended 
various  mathemathical  works,  some  translated  from  the  Greek,  others  of  his 
own  composition,  none  of  which  have  come  down  to  us.  We  still  possess 
two  books  on  Geometry  by  Boethius,  but  we  have  lost  his  Latin  translations 
of  the  treatise  of  Nicomachus  uj^on  Arithmetic,  of  the  "  Geometry"  of  Euclid, 
of  a  treatise  upon  the  Squaring  of  the  Circle,  as  also  several  original  treatises 
in  which  he  commented  wath  great  erudition  on  the  cosmogonic  doctrines  of 
Pythagoras  and  Ptolemy.     King  Theodoric,  who  afterwards  had  him  put  to  a 


Fig.  .57. — The  Planetary  Systems. — Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving  attributed  to  Holbein  in  the 
German  Translation  of  the  "  Consolation  of  Philosophy,"  by  Boethius,  Augsburg  Edition, 
1537,  in  folio. 


cruel  death  (o25),  at  that  tmic  wrote  to  him  in  the  following  complimentary 
tenus : — "By  means  of  your  Latin  translatinns,  Rome  has  received  from  you 
all  the  sciences  and  arts  which  the  Greeks  had  brought  to  such  a  high  pitcli 
of  perfection.  Those  who  know  both  Latin  and  Greek  will  prefer  your 
tran.slations  to  the  original.  The  four  portions  of  mathematics  have  been  to 
you  a  sort  of  door,  as  it  were,  giving  admittance  to  the  science  of  mechanics, 
and  this  science  you  have  extracted  from  the  very  entrails  of  nature." 

The  school  of  Alexandria  was  the  centre  of  mathematical  studies,  and 
Boethius  undertook  to  acquaint  the  Roman  world  with  the  principal  works  of 


MATHEMATICAL   SCIENCES. 


tlie  Greek  mathematicians.  Pappus,  one  of  tlie  most  celebrated,  who,  at  the 
close  of  the  fourth  century,  formed  his  mathematical  collections,  was  not 
translated  into  Latin  until  the  Renaissance.  The  influence  of  Boethius  upon 
the  progress  of  the  exact  sciences  in  Europe  was  not  destined  to  survive  him> 
and  for  more  than  two  centuries  mathematics  were  applied  only  to  architec- 
ture, hydraulics,  and  celestial  cosmography,  with  regard  to  which  the  most 
absurd  notions  were  entertained. 

However,  science  was  stiU  worthily  represented  in  the  schools  of  Alexandria 
and  Constantinojjle.  Two  geometers  belonging  to  them,  Anthemius  of 
Tralles  and  Eutocius  of  Ascalon,  flourished  in  the  reign  of  Justinian  (527 — 
565).  The  former,  busying  himself  moi'e  especially  with  the  problems  of 
mechanics,  contributed  to  the  erection  of  the  basilica  of  St.  Sophia  at  Con- 
stantinople, and  obtained  great  renown  as  an  architect  and  sculptor ;  the 
latter,  by  his  commentaries  on  the  mathematical  writings  of  Archimedes  and 
Apollonius  of  Perga,  made  them  of  practical  and  general  utility. 

But  it  was  in  the  East,  and  in  the  very  extreme  East,  that  the  pursuit  of 
mathematics,  apjjlied  to  the  study  of  astronomy,  had  acquired  the  greatest 
impetus.  In  China  the  Mandarin  Yhiang  noted  the  eclipses,  drew  up  a 
catalogue  of  the  stars,  marked  the  degrees  of  longitude,  and  formed  a  new 
calendar.  In  India  the  first  astronomical  tables  were  established  bj^  aid  of 
the  Send-hind,  the  sacred  book  of  the  Brahmins.  The  Caliph  Al-Mansour 
ordered  these  tables  to  be  translated  into  Arabic.  Following  his  example, 
the  Caliph  Haroun  Alraschid  constituted  himself  protector  of  the  mathe- 
matical sciences,  which  fitted  in  so  well  with  the  genius  and  tendencies  of 
his  people :  he  had  the  books  of  Euclid,  Diophantus,  Ptolemy,  Pliny,  and  the 
best  mathematicians,  astronomers,  and  cosmographers  of  Greek  and  Latin 
antiquity,  translated  into  Arabic  and  Syriac.  Under  the  Caliphs  the  school 
of  Bagdad  attracted  an  immense  number  of  students,  who  came  to  learn  the 
exact  sciences.  Geometry  and  astronomy  were  taught  concurrently  with 
medicine.  It  is  true  that,  owing  to  the  prejudices  from  which  even  the  most 
eminent  in  science  were  subject,  all  the  powers  of  calculation  were  employed 
in  the  measurement  of  the  sidereal  conjunctions,  and  in  stating  precisely  the 
action  of  the  moon  upon  the  hiunan  body  and  upon  the  fecundation  of  germs. 

From  Asia  Minor,  Greece,  and  Egypt,  the  exact  sciences  passed  to  the 
Arab  schools  of  Spain  at  Cordova,  Seville,  and  Granada,  where  they  were 
cultivated  with  much  success.     Many  Jewish  rabbis,  physicians,   and  astro- 


A/A  THEM  A  TICAL   SCIEXCES. 


8[ 


nomei's  addicted  to  the  art  of  divination,  to  astrology,  and  oven  to  magic, 
contributed  in  a  large  degree  to  the  scientific  and  intellectual  movement  in 
the  Iberian  peninsula ;  but  they  were  obliged  to  conceal  their  Hebrew 
origin  under  Arab  pseudonyms. 

Charlemagne,  when  he  instituted  his  palatine  academy,  did  not  omit  the 
exact  sciences,  which  found  a  place  upon  the  same  footing  as  the  speculative 
sciences,  literature,  and  the  arts.  Astronomers  and  geometricians  naturally 
ranked  with  natural  philosophers,  musicians,  and  poets.     The  Irish  man  of 


Fig.  58. — Mathematician  Monks;  one  teaching  the  Globe,  the  other  copying  a  Manuscript. — 
After  a  Miniature  of  the  Romance  of  the  "  Image  of  the  World." — Manuscript  of  the 
Thirteenth  Century. — National  Library,  Paris. 


letters,  Dungal,  was  selected  by  the  great  Emperor  to  superintend  the 
investigations  necessitated  by  the  reform  of  the  calendar,  and  to  collate  the 
annals  of  celestial  phenomena,  and  he  was  assisted  by  xVleuin,  Anialaire,  and 
Raban  Maur. 

At  the  death  of  Charlemagne,  the  exact  sciences,  which  had  flourished  for 
a  brief  space  at  his  court,  seemed  to  shrink  into  the  seclusion  of  the 
monasteries   (Fig.  58).      Dungal  set  his  pupils   the   example  of   ivtirement, 


82 


MATHEMATICAL   SCIEXCES. 


as  he  became  a  monk  at  the  Abbey  of  St.  Denis,  where  he  died  in  829.  The 
Order  of  St.  Benedict  had  ahnost  made  a  monopoly  of  the  exact  sciences, 
which  were  held  in  high  honour  at  the  Abbeys  of  ^ount  Cassini,  in  Italy ; 
of  St.  ilartin,  at  Tours  (France)  ;  of  St.  Arnulph,  at  Metz ;  of  St.  Gall,  in 
Switzerland ;  of  Prum,  in  Bavaria  ;  of  Canterbury,  in  England,  etc.  It  was 
there  that  were  foi-med  the  able  architects  and  ecclesiastical  engineers  who 
erected  so  manv  magnificent  edifices  throughout  Europe,  and  most  of  whom, 
dedicating  their  lives  to  a  work  of  faith  and  pious  devotion,  have,  through 
biimib'ty,  condemned  their  names  to  oblivion. 

Gerbert,  born  at  AurlUac  about  930,  and  admitted  while  very  yoimg 
iato  a  monastery  of  that  town,  was  one  of  those  monks  who  devoted  their 
time  to  the  sciences ;  but  he  distinguished  himself  from  amongst  his  con- 
temporaries as  much  b}'  the  estensiveness  of  his  learning  as  by  the  practical 
direction  which  he  gave  to  his  labours  by  the  applications  that  he  contrived 
to  extract  fi'om  them.  Linguist,  geometrician,  astronomer,  and  mechanist, 
he  went  to  complete  his  mathematical  studies  at  the  schools  of  Cordova  and 
Toledo,  and  thence  repaired  to  Germany,  where  the  Emperor  Otho  III. 
conceived  a  great  liliing  for  him.  He  held  the  see  of  Ravenna,  after  having; 
been  Archbishop  of  Rheims,  and  was  elected  Pope  under  the  title  of 
Sylvester  II.  Gerbert  was,  beyond  question,  the  first  mathematician  of  his 
daj'.  He  it  was  who  popularised  the  use  of  numerals  and  the  system  of 
numbering  which  we  stDI  employ — a  system  very  different  from  that  of 
which  the  Romans  made  use,  but  falsely  attributed  to  the  Arabs,  as  traces 
of  it  are  to  be  found  in  the  works  of  Boethius.  It  was  not,  however,  to  the 
introduction  of  Arab  figures  into  Europe,  but  to  the  use  which  he  made  of 
his  universal  learning,  that  Gerbert  owed  his  fame.  During  his  stay  at  the 
imperial  court  he  fabricated  with  his  own  hands,  amongst  other  curious 
works,  a  clock  worked  by  water,  and  the  movement  of  which  was  regulated 
h}'  the  polar  star.  His  inventions  caused  him  to  be  looked  upon  as  a 
sorcerer,  and  of  his  numerous  scientific  works  all  that  remain  extant  are 
several  treatises  on  Geometry  and  Cosmography. 

His  pupil  and  friend,  Adelbold,  a  native  of  Liege,  after  studying  the 
sciences  there  imder  the  learned  Heriger,  acquired  an  early  celebrity  as  the 
brilliant  rival  of  Fulbert  of  Chartres,  and  of  Abbon,  Abbot  of  Fleury.  The 
Emperor  Henry  II.  attached  him  to  his  household  as  chancellor  or  secretary, 
and  was  loath  to  lose  his  services  bv  raising   hun  to  the   see  of   Utrecht. 


MA  THEM  A  TIC  A  L   SCIENCES. 


83 


Adclbold,  like  Gcrbcrt,  was  acoused  of  mao'ic,  and  tliouoli  ]ic  did  not  make 
n  clock,  he  constructed  several  splendid  cliurclies  with  truly  marvellous 
rapidity,  and  it  was  no  doubt  owing  to  the  jealousy  of  the  masons  that 
this  accusation  was  made  against  him.  The  only  .scientific  work  which 
Adelbold  left  was  a  treatise  on  the  Globe,  dedicated  to  Pope  Sylvester  II. 

The  salutarj'  influence  of  Gerbert  and  Adelbr)ld  made  itself  felt  in  the 
Catholic  world  at  the  approach  of  the  year  lOUO  A.i).,  which,  owing  to  the 


Fig.  59.— PerseiLS  and  Andromeda.— After  a  Miniature  of  the  Fourteenth  Century,  "Liber  de 
Locis  Stellarum  Fixarum." — Spanish  Manuscript. — In  the  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


superstitious  ignorance  of  the  people,  was  looked  forward  to  with  dread  as 
destined  to  usher  in  the  reign  of  Antichrist.  These  two  illustrious  savants 
protested  against  the  threat  of  the  millennium,  and  announced  in  advance 
the  eclipses  and  comets  which  were  considered  to  be  sinister  presages  of  the 
end  of  the  world.  Instead  of  recognising  their  learning  and  admiring  their 
genms,  people  believed  that  they  were  holding  criminal  intercourse  with  the 
spirits  of  evil, 


MATHEMATICAL   SCIENCES. 


The  exact  sciences  continued  to  be  taught  and  to  make  progress  amongst 
the  Greeks,  the  Eastern  peoples,  and  the  Arabs  in  Spain.  Astronomy  was 
still  the  favourite  science  in  the  Mussulman  schools,  and  the  wise  men  of 
Islam  were  always  drawing  up  astronomical  tables.  Al-Battany  spent  fifty 
years  of  his  life  upon  his  Sabean  Table ;  Aben  Byhan  (died  in  941), 
Mohammed  al-Saghany  (died  in  989),  Absoufy  and  Aboul-Waffa  (at  the  end 
of  the  tenth  century),  and  the  most  celebrated  of  all  these  philosophers, 
Aly  ben  Abdel-Ehaman,  spent  their  whole  existence  in  drawing  up  different 
astronomical  tables,  calculating  according  to  the  laws  of  the  motion  of  the 
stars,  for  astronomy  was  at  that  time  a  science  rather  of  calculation  than  of 
observation.  The  Spanish  schools  (Figs.  59  and  60)  were  not  behindhand 
with  the  academy  of  Bagdad  and  the  school  of  Alexandria,  although  the 
scientific  celebrities  in  them  were  not  so  numerous  in  the  eleventh  as  they 
had  been  in  the  tenth  centurj'.  The  most  famous  of  these  Arab  savants 
were  Sjsanish  Jews:  such  as  Soliman  ben  Gavirol  (died  in  1070),  who  was  not 
less  distinguished  as  a  poet  and  moralist  than  he  was  as  a  mathematician,  and 
Abraham  ben  Chija,  who  at  about  the  same  period  drew  up  a  Celestial 
Cosmograph}^  which  was  held  in  high  repute  for  more  than  six  centuries.' 
The  rabbis  who  were  most  famous  for  their  mathematical  and  astronomical 
works,  written  in  Arabic,  such  as  Ibn-Zarcali,  Abraham  Arzachel,  Aben-Ezra, 
all  more  or  less  mingled  with  the  theorems  and  calculations  which  they  took 
from  the  exact  sciences  fanciful  deductions  from  the  Talmud. 

Astronomj'  in  those  days  was  very  often  no  more  than  astrology ;  that  is 
to  say,  the  art  of  drawing  horoscopes  and  making  predictions  by  a  studj^  of 
the  position  of  the  stars  and  of  the  mutual  relations  of  the  planets.  The 
Eastern  peoples,  Persians,  Arabs,  Jews,  were  much  addicted  to  these  practices. 
They  endeavoured  to  ascertain  the  future  by  means  of  the  celestial  con- 
junctions, and  believed  that  they  could  read  in  the  heavens  not  only  the 
fate  of  empires,  but  the  destiuy  of  all  human  beings.  This  so-called 
philosophical  doctrine  was  inaugurated  in  the  ninth  century  by  the  Arab 
astrologer  Albumazar,  in  his  book  on  the  Great  Conjunctions.  He  asserted 
that  the  aiDpearance  of  the  prophets  and  of  religions  had  coincided  with  the 
conjunctions  of  the  planets.  Thus,  according  to  him,  the  conjunction  of 
Jupiter  with  ]\lercury  produced  the  Christian  law ;  but,  in  a  given  time,  the 
con j  miction  of  the  Moon  with  Jupiter  would  bring  about  the  total  downfall 
of  all  religious  beliefs.     A  doctrine  such  as  this,  as  insane  as  it  was  impious, 


MA  rNF.UA  TICAL   SCIENCES. 


8S 


naturally  excited  the  reprobation  of  the  Cliurch.  Judicial  astrology  was 
forbidden  in  all  Christian  countries,  and  condemned  by  the  Holv  See.  The 
Catholic  professors  very  projicrlj-  denounced  tliis  chimerical  science,  as 
opening  a  patli  to  fatalism  of  the  most  reckless  and  culpable  kind. 

"While  astrology  was  prohibited  as  an  occult  science,  and  the  Church  was 
anathematizing  it,  astronomy  took  her  place  as  one  of  the  seven  liberal  arts 
which  were  taught,  for  more  than  a  thousand  years,  at  the  school  of 
Alexandria.      When   the  University  of  Paris   was  being  fonned  upon   the 


Fig.  60.— The  Centaur.— After  a  Miniature  ot  the  Fourteenth  Century,  "  Liber  de  Locis  Stellarum 
Fixarum."— Spanish  Manuscript.— Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


model  of  that  celebrated  school,  astronomy,  as  a  matter  of  course,  was 
included  in  the  qundrivium,  which  fonned  the  second  order  of  study,  and 
which  further  consisted  of  arithmetic,  geometry,  and  music.  But  the 
qiKidrivimn,  representing  higher  education,  was  followed  by  a  very  limited 
number  of  students,  most  of  them  not  getting  further  than  the  friniim, 
which  comprised  only  the  primary  sciences  or  the  humanities,  grammar, 
rhetoric,  and  dialectics. 


86  MATHEMATICAL    SCIENCES. 


The  same  was  the  case  in  all  the  schools  of  Europe  ;  but  those  of  Italy 
and  England  accorded  more  time  to  mathematical  sciences  towards  the 
close  of  the  twelfth  century.  At  Pisa,  a  learned  mathematician,  Leonardo 
Fibonacci,  better  known  as  Leo  of  Pisa,  brought  back  from  his  journey  to 
the  East  the  algebraic  notation  which  Gerbert  had  invented,  or  rather  pro- 
pagated in  Europe,  two  centuries  previously  ;  and  Fibonacci  has  often  been 
credited  with  the  introduction  of  Arab  figures  and  the  use  of  the  abbreviative 
method  in  lengthj^  calculations.  Amongst  the  professors  at  Oxford  about 
this  period  there  was  another  mathematician  not  less  remarkable,  who,  though 
he  had  not  travelled  like  Fibonacci,  had  the  talent  to  discover  all  the  formula 
of  the  exact  sciences.  This  was  Robert,  suruamed  Grossetete,  who  was  the 
master  and  friend  of  Adam  of  Marisco  and  of  the  celebrated  Roger  Bacon. 

Roger  Bacon,  in  all  his  allusions  to  Robert  Grossetete,  speaks  of  him  in 
the  most  respectful  terms.  He  describes  him  as  one  of  the  most  enlightened, 
the  best  informed,  and  most  eminent  men  of  his  day ;  as  fuUy  conversant 
with  all  languages,  even  Greek  and  Hebrew,  which  were  then  but  little 
known ;  as  very  dissatisfied  with  the  Latin  translations  of  Aristotle  which 
were  at  that  time  iised  in  the  Universities,  and  endeavouring,  with  the 
assistance  of  his  friends  and  pupils,  to  provide  better  ones  ;  as  allying  the 
love  of  science  to  that  of  letters ;  as  being  as  much  versed  in  mathematics 
and  astronomjf  as  was  possible  in  his  day ;  as  the  interpreter  of  Aristotle's 
logic ;  and  as  the  author  of  a  treatise  upon  the  Celestial  Globe.  It  ma^^  be 
mentioned,  also,  that,  in  addition  to  these  uncommon  qualities  of  philosopher 
and  savant,  Robert  Grossetete  possessed  sincere  piety  and  deep  theological 
learning.  Raised  to  the  episcopal  see  of  Lincoln  (he  died  in  1253),  he  left 
behind  him  letters,  still  extant,  which  contain  unequivocal  proof  of  the 
sincerity  of  his  devotion  to  the  Papacy,  of  which  he  was  falsely  represented 
as  an  open  enemy. 

Adam  de  Marisco  belonged,  like  Robert  Grosstete,  to  the  Church.  He 
passed  the  greater  part  of  his  days  in  England,  in  a  Franciscan  monastery, 
but  the  life  of  the  cloister  did  not  deaden  in  him  the  love  of  science.  Roger 
Bacon  almost  alwaj-s  speaks  of  him,  as  of  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  as  one  of 
the  lights  of  his  age — as  a  master  in  grammar,  mathematics,  and  astronomy. 

But  it  was,  above  all,  the  name,  the  learning,  and  the  genius  of  Roger 
Bacon  (born  in  1214)  which  predominated  in  the  scientific  history  of  the 
thirteenth  century.     The   school  itself,  often  as  he  combated  its  views,  gave 


MA  THEM  A  TICAL   SCIEXCES. 


87 


him  the  title  of  Adiiiirahle  Doctor,  and  he  proved  him.self  worthy  of  it  by  the 
general  curicjsitj-  ^^•hi(_•ll  animated  him,  by  the  ardour  which  he  displayed  for 


Fig.    61. — A    Lesson   in   Astionomj-    (Thirteenth    Century). — Miniature   from    the   Breviary   of 
St.  Louis. — In  the  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


the  advancement  of  science,  and,  above  all,  l)y  the  grandeur  and  originality 
of  the  views  expressed  by  him  in  his  works.  He  represents  more  accurately 
than  any  one  else  in  the  thirteenth  century  the  movement  which  was  already 


MATHEMATICAL  SCIENCES. 


urging  so  many  minds  to  the  stud}^  of  nature,  and  to  tlie  experimental 
method  without  which  the  mysteries  of  nature  remain  unfathomable.  Whilst 
St.  Thomas  Aquinas  was  devoting  to  Christian  theology  all  the  resources  of 
his  dialectics  and  all  the  glow  of  his  piety,  Roger  Bacon  applied  himself  to 
natural  jDhilosophy  and  mathematics,  paying  special  attention  to  the  study  of 
languages,  which  he  looked  ufion  as  closely  connected  with  the  progress  of 
the  natural  sciences  (Fig.  61). 

But  a  too  exclusive  de\'otion  to  these  his  favourite  studies  eventually  led 
Roger  Bacon  astray,  and  he  came  to  look  with  contempt  upon  all  methods 
except  his  own.  Upon  repairing  to  Paris  after  his  residence  at  Oxford,  he 
unhesitatingly  attacked  the  sj'stem  of  teaching  in  the  Universities,  accusing 
the  masters  and  professors  either  of  ignoi'ance  or  bad  faith ;  and,  though 
himself  belonging  to  the  Order  of  St.  Francis,  he  declared  war  upon  the 
Franciscans  and  Dominicans  in  France,  whom  he  did  not  consider  equal  to 
the  learned  friends  he  had  left  behind  him  in  England,  such  as  Robert  of 
Lincoln,  William  of  Sherwood,  John  of  London,  and,  above  all,  the  person 
whom  he  spoke  of  as  Master  Nicholas.  "  Experience  is  worth  more  than 
Aristotle,"  he  said  ;  "  all  the  metaphysics  of  the  school  are  not  to  be  compared 
with  a  little  grammar  and  mathematics ;  Alexander  of  Hales  and  Albert  are 
presumptuous  schoolmen  who  exercise  a  fatal  influence ;  let  us  beware  of 
becoming  subject  to  it,  and  let  us  complete  for  ourselves  our  education,  which 
is  scarcely  as  yet  begun." 

From  this  time  he  applied  himself  to  the  study  of  four  ancient  languages, 
higher  mathematics,  astronomy,  optics,  and  Platonist  philosophy.  He  was 
assisted  in  his  studies  by  a  man  of  incomparable  genius,  a  French  savant 
belonging  to  Picardy,  whom  he  always  speaks  of  as  Magister  Petrus  or 
Magister  Peregrinus,  and  who  would  be  absolutely  unknown  if  his  illustrious 
pupil  had  not  handed  his  name  down,  in  his  "  Opus  Tertium  "  and  his  "  Opus 
Mmus,"  to  the  acbniration  of  posterity.  Magister  Petrus  led  a  solitary  life, 
avoiding  the  society  of  his  fellow-men,  whom  he  looked  upon  as  mad,  or  as 
sophists  incapable  of  enduring  the  light  of  truth ;  he  endeavoured  to  pene- 
trate the  secrets  of  nature ;  he  observed  the  stars,  and  sought  out  the  causes  of 
the  celestial  phenomena ;  he  imposed  upon  science  the  task  of  multiplying  the 
metamorphoses  of  matter;  he  invented  arms  and  instruments  of  war;  he 
gave  a  practical  and  useful  application  to  alchemy ;  he  paid  attention  at  the 
same    time   to    agronomy,   surveying,   and    architecture,    and  he    sought   to 


MA  THEM  A  TIC  A  L  SCIENCES. 


extract  from  the  devices  of  sorcerers  and  magicians  whatever  experimental 
science  could  discover  therein.  In  a  word,  ^lagister  Petrus  deserved  the 
surname  which  his  pupil  gave  him  of  Mogister  Experimentonnn. 

Such  a  guide  was  invaluable  to  Roger  Bacon  in  the  wonderful  inventions 
attributed  to  him,  for  in  most  of  his  researches  and  experiments  he  was 
doubtless  assisted  by  the  advice  of  Magister  Petrus.  His  works,  more 
particulai'ly  his  "  Ojius  JIajus,"  show  to  what  a  height  he  elevated  science, 
substituting  the  experimental  for  the  scientific  method.  It  is  easy  to  under- 
stand how  the  invention  of  gunpowder,  telescopes,  magnifj'ing  glasses,  &c., 
came  to  be  attributed  to  him.  He  merely  put  into  execution,  as  it  would 
appear,  the  scientific  discoveries  of  his  master,  who  had  observed  the 
phenomenon  of  refraction  and  the  properties  of  the  loadstone,  and  who  con- 
structed a  movable  sphere  which  reproduced  all  the  motions  of  the  stars. 
Roger  Bacon  also  devoted  his  attention  to  philosoi^hy,  and  as  early  as  the  year 
1269  he  proposed  the  reform  of  the  calendar  (Figs.  62 — 67). 

But  the  attitude  which  he  had  assumed,  and  the  severity  of  his  criticisms 
upon  the  most  illustrious  of  his  contemporaries,  made  him  many  bitter 
enemies. 

His  principal  adversaries — or  rather,  perhaps,  his  rivals — were,  like  himself, 
monks  of  the  Franciscan  Order.  He  was  denounced  to  his  superiors  as  being 
guilty  of  heresy  in  his  teaching  of  science,  and  he  was  confined  in  a  prison 
where  he  could  not  have  any  communication  with  his  pupils.  The  latter, 
most  of  whom  belonged  to  the  same  religious  order,  and  all  of  whom  were 
famous  astronomers  or  mathematicians,  such  as  Thomas  Bungey,  Jean  de 
Paris,  John  Bacon  or  Baconthorp,  nicknamed  the  Prince  of  Averroists, 
did  not  venture  to  espouse  his  cause  for  fear  of  being  involved  in  his  disgrace. 
He  had,  however,  a  friend  in  Clement  IV.,  to  whom  he  had  dedicated  his 
"  Opus  Majus,"  and  was,  by  his  order,  set  at  liberty.  But,  at  the  death  of  that 
pontiff,  he  was  again  imprisoned  and  treated  with  still  greater  severity,  for 
he  was  refused  the  use  of  writing  materials.  He  managed,  however,  to  revise 
and  perfect  his  "  Opus  Majus,"  which  contains  the  substance  of  his  doctrine, 
and  he  wrote  two  epitomes  of  it,  far  more  advanced  than  the  original,  with 
the  titles  of  "  Opus  ]\Iinus  "  and  "  Opus  Tertium."  Both  of  the.se  books,  though 
they  long  remained  unpublished,  were  not  destroyed,  notwithstanding  the 
per.secution  to  which  their  author  was  subjected  during  his  lifetime,  but  it  is 
not  many  years  since  they  first  saw  the  light.       This  man  <if  genius,   who 


90 


MATHEMATICAL   SCIENCES. 


Fi"-.  62.— The  Burgher  i  i  Winter. 


Fiff.  63.— The  Sower. 


^^^^^^^L 


Fig.  64. — Lovers  ia  Springtide. 


Fig.  6o. — The  Sheep  Slieurer. 


Fig.  6C.— A  Ri,le  in  Snmnier.  Fig.  67.-The  Reaper. 

Miuiutures   from    the  Gilendar  of  a  "Book  of  Hours."-M=muscript  of  the  heginuing  of  the 

Si.xteenth  Century. 


A/A  rUKMA  Jl(  \A  L    SCIENCES.  9 1 


had  received  the  title  of  AdmirnJilc  Dortnr,  died  about  r2n4,  almost  forgotten 
by  the  men  of  that  generation,  without  ]ia\ing  been  able  to  realise  that 
regeneration  of  the  scientific  school  which  he  had  made  the  object  of  his 
life.  It  should  be  added,  however,  that  he  had  become  a  dupe  to  the  Arabism 
of  Albumazar  and  the  Aristotelism  of  Averroes,  and  that  he  acquiesced  in  all 
the  wild  conceptions  of  astrology  and  alchemy. 

The  Oxford  school,  to  which  the  illustrious  Roger  Bacon  belonged, 
appears  to  have  been  the  cradle  of  English  scepticism,  which,  after  a  long  and 
sullen  opposition  to  the  teaching  of  the  Catholic  dogma,  finally  terminated 
in  the  most  uncompromising  heresy.  The  contemj^oraries  of  Bacon  were  all 
more  or  less  of  scejjtics.  John  Basingstoke,  who  became  Archdeacon  of 
London  and  of  Leicester,  where  he  died  in  \'2~y2,  entered  upon  scholasticism 
with  much  mistrust  and  doubt.  He  made  a  journey  into  Greece,  to  give  the 
agitation  excited  \>y  his  works  ujjon  the  Bible  time  to  cool  down,  and  there 
devoted  himself  to  the  study  of  the  exact  sciences,  and  brought  back  to 
England  the  figures  and  ciphers  which  the  Greeks  used  to  signify  numerals. 
Another  pupil  of  the  Oxford  school,  John  of  Holywood,  called  Sacrohrm-n, 
had  already  a  reputation  as  astronomer  or  cosmographist  when  he  came  to 
study  at  the  University  of  Paris,  where  he  afterwards  taught  mathematics 
with  great  success.  He  composed  a  treatise  on  the  Celestial  Globe  ( "  De  Sphiera 
Mundi  "),  which  was  an  imitation  and  abridgment  of  Ptolemy's  bonk,  and 
which  continued  to  be  a  classic  work  in  all  the  schools  of  Eurfipe  for  more 
than  three  centuries.  He  also  left  a  woi'k  considered  to  be  of  great  value 
upon  the  Reckoning  of  Time  ("  De  Anni  Ratione  "),  a  treatise  upon  Astrolabe, 
and  another  on  Algorithms.  Like  most  mathematicians  of  his  day,  he  also 
sought  to  predict  the  future  and  to  draw  horoscopes. 

The  school  of  Canterbury,  less  impulsive  than  that  of  (Jxford,  pursued 
very  steadily  the  study  of  the  exact  sciences  under  the  superintendence  of 
eminent  prelates,  amongst  whom  may  be  mentioned  Thomas  Bradwardin, 
Archbishop  of  Canterbur3%  surnamed  the  Pnifotniil  Dorfor,  and  Richard 
Walinford,  Abbot  of  St.  Albans,  who  were  the  first  mathematicians  of  the 
fourteenth  century.  Denmark,  at  the  same  period,  was  rejoicing  in  the 
discoveries  of  a  learned  astronomer,  De  Duco,  author  of  a  new  Ecclesiastical 
Computation  and  of  a  valuable  treatise  upon  the  Calendar. 

All  the  greatest  astronomical  discoveries  were  effected  in  the  Eiist,  in 
Persia,   Arabia,  and  even    in    the  provinces  of   Lebanon.       Xassir-lvldin,   a 


92 


MATHEMATICAL   SCIENCES. 


Persian,  invented  some  ingenious  instruments  for  mathematical  calculations, 
and  he  collected,  under  the  title  of  "  Ilkhauian  Tables,"  a  number  of  daily 
observations  upon  the  state  of  the  sky  and  the  course  of  the  stars.  The 
Armenian  Ezenkansti  not  only  observed  the  celestial  phenomena,  but  he 
described  them  in  verse,  and  celebrated  them  in  his  poetiy.  Astronomy 
comprised  studious  and  zealous  foUcn^ers  even  in  Morocco,  Avhere  Aly 
Aboul-Kalan  wrote  his  book  on  "  Beginnings  and  Endings,"  supj)lementing  the 
compared  results  of  telescojaic  observations  with  the  most  minute  calculations. 
But,  from  the  close  of  the  thirteenth  century,  the  savants  of  Italy  had 


Fig.  68. — Astronomer  accused  of  Sorcery,  holding  u  Disc 
with  Magic  Figures.— Capital  Letter  in  a  "  Book  of 
Jurisprudence. ' '— Manuscri  pt  of  the  Thirteenth  Century. 
In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot. 


devoted  themselves  by  preference  to  mathematics,  though  the  study  of  the 
exact  sciences  was  too  often  suspected  of  heresy.  Campano,  who  had 
translated  Euclid,  had  some  difficulty  in  defending  himself  from  the 
suspicions  and  denunciations  of  the  theologians,  while  Pietro  d'Abano,  who 
professed  medicine  and  astronomy  at  the  University  of  Padua,  had  the 
misfortune  to  lean  to\\-ards  the  errors  of  Averroism,  and  to  fall  a  victim  to 
astrology.  Accused  of  sorcery,  and  condemned  to  the  stake,  he  escaped  that 
punishment  by  suicide  (131 6),  or  else  died  suddenly— it  is  not  known  which— 
before  the  sentence  was  executed.     The  principal  mathematicians  belonged  to 


MATHEMATICAL   SCIENCES.  93 


the  school  of  Florence.  Dugomari,  called  Paul  the  Geometer,  and  Abbaco 
contributed  simultaneously  to  the  progress  of  the  exact  sciences,  but  none  of 
their  pupils  were  capable  of  taking  their  place. 

Mathematics  were  but  little  cultivated  in  France,  though  in  the  fourteenth 
century  may  be  mentioned  Jean  de  Lignieres,  whom  a  chronicler  calls  "  the 
restorer  of  the  science  of  the  stars,"  and  Jean  des  Murs,  canon  of  the 
Cathedral  of  Paris,  who  compiled  some  valuable  works  on  Arithmetic. 
Bonnet  de  Lates,  a  physician  in  Provence,  conceived  the  idea  of  an  astro- 
nomical ring  for  measuiing  the  height  of  the  sun  and  the  stars  (Fig.  68). 
This  mathematician  failed,  however,  to  guard  himself  from  the  errors  of 
contemporary  science,  and  his  weighty  study  of  astronomy  did  not  save  him 
from  making  predictions  based  upon  the  conjunctions  of  the  planets  and  so 
forth. 

Ijuring  the  Italian  Renaissance  mathematics  were  not  neglected,  and  thev 
were  taught  with  success  during  the  fifteenth  centuiy  at  PLome,  Naples, 
Padua,  Bologna,  Pisa,  and  more  esj^ecially  at  Florence.  Thev  were  at  that 
time  almost  entirely  extricated  from  the  dangerous  illusions  of  astrologv, 
and  no  longer  involved  noble  minds  in  the  fatal  j^aths  of  doubt  and  heresy- 
They  were  2:)rofessed,  moreover,  by  some  of  the  principal  doctors  of  the 
Church,  and  were  in  a  certain  degree  honoured  bj'  the  direct  jirotection  of 
the  Holy  See,  when  ^neas  Sjdvius  Piccolomini,  one  of  the  first  mathema- 
ticians of  his  century,  was  elected  Poj^e,  with  the  title  of  Pius  II.  (14-58 — 
1464).  Pope  Pius  II.  was  a  man  of  general  learning,  but  his  favourite 
study  was  that  of  co.smograph}'.  At  the  same  time,  Cardinal  Nicholas  de 
Cusa,  his  rival  in  learning,  found  time,  while  fulfilling  his  diplomatic 
functions  at  the  Court  of  Rome,  to  write  works  on  Mathematics,  Geomotr^•, 
and  Astronomy,  in  which  he  maintained  the  system  of  the  earth's  rotation 
around  the  sun,  and  admitted  in  principle  the  plurality  of  worlds,  two 
centuries  before  Galileo. 

The  example  of  Pius  II.  induced  his  successors,  Paul  II.  and  Sixtus  IV., 
to  favour  the  exact  sciences.  It  was  Sixtus  IV.  who  summoned  to  Rome  the 
celebrated  Konigsberg  astronomer,  Johann  Miiller,  called  Rocjiotnonfnnus,^  who 
had  been  recommended  to  him  by  Cai'dinal  I5essarion.  Regiomontanus,  the 
most  celebrated  pupil  of  G.  Purbach,  had  already  obtained  a  great  reputation 
m  Italy,  whither  he  accompanied  Cardinal  Bessarion  in  1463.  The  course 
of  astronomy'    which    he    commenced   'at    Padua    in    that   year    atti-acted    an 


9+ 


MATHEMATICAL   SCIENCES. 


enormous  audience.  He  afterwards  became  astronomer-roj-al  to  Matthias 
Corvinus,  King  of  Hungary.  But,  unfortunately  for  him,  he  was  unable  to 
resist  the  entreaties  of  Pope  Sixtus  IV.,  who  induced  him  to  come  to  Eome. 


Fig.  69.— Ptuloniy'a  System,  explained  by  Johann  Jliiller,  calleil  Regiomontitnus.— Fac-simile  of  a 
Wood  Engraving  of  the  "Epitome  .  .  .  Johannes  de  Monte  Regio  "  (BasileiB,  ap.  H.  Petri, 
1543,  in  folio). 


It  is  generally  bclieyed  that  the  envy  and  revenge  of  his  scientific  rivals  had 
something  to  do  with  his  premature  death  in  1476.  Although  he  died  at 
under  forty  years  of   age,  he    had  written  a  number  of    astronomical  and 


MATHEMATICAL   SCIENCES.  95 


iiiuthemutit-al  works,  which  had  a  great  success  both  during  liis  lifetime 
and  after  his  death  (Fig.  tiU).  His  researches  upon  the  calendar  and  upon 
triangulation  were  the  basis  of  the  remarkable  labours  of  the  Wurteniljerg 
astronomer,  iStiiffler  (\\-y2 — 1531),  who  can  claim  the  honour  of  compiling 
the  great  Roman  Calendar  ("  Kalendarium  Ronianum  magauni  "). 

The  teaching  of  mathematics  was  very  brilHant  at  Kaples  during  the 
reign  of  Alfonso  of  Aragon,  the  Magnanimous  (1415 — 1458).  People  came 
thither  from  all  jjarts  to  hear  the  Tuscan  professor,  Buoneucontro,  who,  in  his 
double  capacity  of  poet  and  orator,  gave  an  unusual  charm  to  the  exposition 
of  the  celestial  phenomena,  and  who  had  the  good  fortune  to  allude  openly 
to  astrology,  and  even  to  magic,  without  provoking  the  remonstrances  or  the 
I'epression  of  the  ecclesiastical  authorities.  These  were  the  preludes  of  the 
RefoiTuation,  which  made  its  jjresence  felt  in  science  by  proclaiming  the  right 
of  free  examination  before  applying  it  to  the  dogmas  of  religion.  It  must 
also  be  said  that  the  Greek  savants,  who  had  emigrated  into  Eiii'ope,  and 
especially  into  Italy,  after  the  occupation  of  Constantinople  by  the  Turks, 
brought  with  them  more  fondness  and  aptitude  for  the  occult  than  for  the 
exact  sciences.  Several  of  these  Greek  savants  had  been  received  b}' 
Matthias  Corvinus,  King  of  Hungary,  who,  in  his  admiration  for  the  sciences, 
gave  the  palm  to  astrology  and  alchemy  ;  and  the  observatory  attached  to  his 
palace  at  Buda  was  used  less  for  observing  the  position  of  the  stars,  and 
studj'ing  the  laws  of  their  motions,  than  for  seeking  therebj'  to  forecast  the 
future.  His  library  was  comf)osed  of  the  most  rare  and  magnificent  manu- 
scripts, but  a  great  jiart  of  them  referred  to  alchemy  and  the  philosopher's 
stone.  "WTiilc  harbouring  these  Greeks  from  Constantinople,  who  claimed  to 
be  alchemists  and  astrologers,  Matthias  Corvinus  also  placed  great  confidence 
in  a  true  Italian  savant,  Fioravanti  Alberti,  who  had  little  dealing  with 
astrology,  and  who  applied  almost  exclusivelj'  to  works  of  architecture  and 
design  his  profound  kn(.)wledge  of  mathematics,  and  esjjecially  of  geometry. 

At  this  eiMch  astrology  was  everywhere  beginning  to  supplant  astronomy. 
There  was  not  a  sovereign  or  prince  in  Eui-ope  but  had  in  his  service  an 
astrologer,  more  or  less  able  and  crafty,  wlio  in  many  cases  sailed  under  the 
colours  of  a  physician.  King  Louis  XI.  never  arrived  at  any  important 
decision  without  having  consulted  his  Neapolitan  astrologer,  Angelo  Cattho 
de  Sopino,  whom  he  created  Archbishop  of  Yienne  in  Dauphiny,  as  a  reward 
for  the  accuracy  of  his  sidereal  predictions.       The  Emj)eror  Maximilian  was 


96 


3/A  THEMA  TICAL  SCIENCES. 


alwaj's  accompanied  by  his  pliysician,  Grunpek,  whose  prescriptions  were 
dictated  by  the  stars,  and  who  paid  more  heed  to  the  politics  than  to  the 
health  of  his  august  master. 

The  exact  sciences  still  found  a  home,  however,  in  Italy  at  Florence, 
where  Buouencontro  and  the  Alberti  had  formed  a  numerous  school,  and 
the  apjjlication  of  mathematics  to    arts  and    industry   was    the  result  of   a 


in 


'  /  \.    ^^  ?*"_._^^\|        HI     li    l|  ,  Mill!  nil 

\fijL 

I 

J 


i'ig.  70.— Instruments  of  Mathemalical  Precision  for  executing  Portraits.— Fac-siinile  of  a  Wood 
Engiaving  by  Albeit  Diirer,  "  Institiitionura  Geometricarum  Libri  Qualuor"  (Parisiis,  ex  offi- 
cina  Christiani  Wecleli,  1535,  in  folio).— In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 

serious  and  solid  course  of  teaching-.  At  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century 
the  astronomer  Pozzo  Toscanelli  traced  for  Christopher  Columbus,  who 
derived  material  assistance  from  his  teaching,  the  route  which  he  must  take 
across  the  ocean  in  order  to  reach  the  western  coasts  of  the  Indies ;  the 
mathematician  Paccioli  was  animated  by  Christian  faith  when  he  wrote  his 
great  cosmogiaphical  and  philosophical  work  entitled,   "  De  Divina  Propor- 


MA  THEM  A  TIC  A  L   SCIENCES. 


97 


tiune; "  uud  the  great  Michael  Augelo,  suiTouncled  bya  group  of  younger  artists, 
who  looked  xv^on  him  as  the  regenerator  of  modern  art,  sought  in  the  science 
of  mathematics  the  most  wonderful  secrets  of  architecture  and  sculpture. 
Like  i^Iichael  Angelo  and  Leonardo  da  Yinci,  there  was  not  a  single  great 
artist  of  that  day  who  was  not,  in  addition,  a  consummate  mathematician 
(Figs.  70  and  71). 

The  mathematicians,  it  is  true,  did  not  all  develop  into  artists,  notwith- 


I'ig.  71. — Instrument  of  Mathematical  Precision  for  desipining  Objects  in  Persijective. — Fac-simile 
of  a  Wood  Engraving  from  Albert  Diirer's  Work,  "Institutionum  Geometricarum  Libri 
Quatuor"  ^Parisiis,  ex  oflicina  Christiani  Wecheli,  1535,  in  folio).— In  the  Library  of 
M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


standing  the  general  tendency  ;\hich  led  them  to  cultivate  the  arts.  At 
Ferrara  Alumno  remained  co-smograj^hist,  and  devoted  jjart  of  his  life  to 
composing  voluminous  works  uijon  celestial  mechanics  ("I)e  Fabrica  Mundi  ") ; 
at  Perugia  the  Dantes,  who  were  not  of  the  same  family  as  the  writer  of  the 
"  Divine  Comedy,"  devoted  their  time  to  purely  mathematical  works  ;  and  one 
of  them,  Egnazio  Dante,  who  collated  in  his  repertory  of  the  "Scienze  Mathe- 
matice  in   Tavole  "  (the  :Mathematical   Sciences   in  Tables)  all  the  problems 

o 


MATHEMATICAL   SCIENCES. 


resolved  \>y  his  jjrecleoessors,  constructed  an  immense  table,  upon  which  were 
marked  with  great  precision  the  equinoxes  and  the  solstices. 

In  Spain,  as  in  Portugal,  where  the  adventurous  spirit  of  the  nation 
favoured  long  sea  voyages  and  expeditions  to  the  East  and  West  Indies,  the 
exact  sciences  contributed  to  the  progress  of  navigation,  especially  in  regard 
to  hydrographj'  and  astronomy.  A  Portuguese  Jew,  Abraham  ben  Samuel 
Zacuth,    published  at  Lisbon  a   perpetual   almanac,    which   was   afterwards 


Fig.  72.-Ger,n.<in  Astronomer   and  Cosraograi.hist.-Fac-simile  of  a  Wood   Engraving  of  the 
Sixteenlli  Century,  by  J.  Amman. 


completed  and  perfected  by  Alfonso  of  Cordova,  a  Seville  physician,  who  also 
published  some  excellent  astronomical  tables. 

England  and  Germany  (Fig.  72)  were  not  behindhand  in  this  forward 
movement  of  science ;  but  the  savants  of  these  two  countries  belonged  more 
or  less  to  the  sceptical  school  which  brought  about  the  Reformation,  and 
found  means  in  all  their  works,  however  excellent  from  a  scientific  point  of 
view,  a  pretext  or  an  opportunity  for  attacking  the  Catholic  religion.  It 
might  have  been  supposed  that  mathematics  were  oifensive  weapons  placed  in 
the  hands  of  blind  sectaries  of  heresy.     At  the  same  time  it  would  be  imjust 


MA  Til  EM  A  TIC  A  L   SCIENCES. 


99 


to  imder-estimatc  the  importance  of  the  labours  of  Pjatecumbe,  an  Englishman, 
who  composed  so  many  works  on  astronomy  ;  of  Pe3'rbach,  an  Austrian,  who 
conceived  an  ingenious  theory  of  the  planets;  or  of  Gaspard  Peucer,  a 
Saxon,  who  described  the  motion  of  the  stars,  and  represented  for  the  first 
time  the  true  configuration  of  the  earth. 

But  it  may  be  said  that  all  the  science  of  the  Middle  Ages  is  summed 
up  in  the  memorable  book   of  Pic  Mirandola,  "  De  omni  re  scibili,"  which 


Fig.  73.— Arc  with  Double  Compartment  for  Fig.  7i.- Small  Quadrant,  or  Quarter  of 

measuring  the  Shortest  Distances  of  the  a  Circle,  in  Copper  Gilt. 

Stars. 
Fac-simile    of  Copper   Engravings    in    the  Work,  "Tychonis    Brahe   Astronomi.-c    Instaurataa 
Mechauica"  (Noribergfe,  apud  Levinum  Ilulsium,  1602,  in  folio). 

contains  nine  hundred  proiOTsitions  embracing  the  totality  of  human  know- 
ledge at  this  epoch.  Pic  Jlirandola  was  but  nine-and-twenty  years  of  age 
when  he  undertook  to  sustain  in  public  these  nine  hundred  propositions 
against  any  one  who  would  accept  the  inimen.se  re.sponsibilitj'  of  thi.s  scientific 
and  oratorical  tournament,  in  which,  as  may  be  .supposed,  the  mathematical 
and  astronomical  sciences  held  a  large  place.  JN'o  one  came  forward  to  pick 
up  the  glove,  but  Pic  Miraiidola's  book,  submitted  to  pontifical  censure,  wa.s 


MATHEMATICAL   SCIENCES. 


condemned  as  heretical  -with  regard  to  a  number  of  points,  in  dealing  with 
which  the  writer  had  ojDenly  declared  himself  the  partisan  of  Averroism,  a 
bastard  kind  of  scholasticism  which  linked  the  principles  of  Plato  and 
Aristotle  to  the  vagaries  of  Albumazar.  He  was  not  persecuted,  as  Roger 
Bacon  and  Pietro  d'Abano  had  been,  but  he  voluntarihr  submitted  himself  to 
exile,  and  found  a  f)eaceful  asylum  in  France,  under  the  protection  of  the 
University  of  Paris,  in  which  he  had  previously  studied  the  higher  sciences, 
and  even  cabalism. 

Averroism,  with  its  attendant  mysteries  of  astrology  and  magic,  con- 
tinued to  reign  in  the  schools  of  Italy  and  of  Germany,  making  its  baneful 
influence  felt  in  the  exact  as  well  as  in  the  speculative  sciences.  Its  principal 
centre  was  the  University  of  Padua.  The  illustrious  Jerome  Cardan  of 
Pavia  (died  in  1576)  had  begvm  bis  career  of  professor  by  teaching  mathe- 
matics at  Milan,  and  it  was  then  that  he  invented  a  new  mode  of  resolving 
algebraic  equations.  But  his  passion  for  astrology  and  the  occult  sciences 
soon  dragged  him  into  a  vicious  circle  of  wild  crazes  and  visions.  So  it  was 
with  Cornelius  Agrippa  of  Nettesheim  (born  at  Cologne  in  1486),  with 
Theophrastus  Bombastes,  surnanied  Paracelsus  (born  at  Einsiedlen,  in  Switzer- 
land, about  1493),  who  would  have  been  two  great  philosophers,  two  great 
physicians,  and  two  great  mathematicians,  if  they  had  not  preferred  to  be 
astrologers  and  cabalists ;  but,  as  it  was,  they  lived  in  poverty,  and  died  in 
misery,  one  at  the  Grenoble  Hospital  (1535),  the  other  at  the  Hospital  of 
Salzburg  (1541).  Another  dreamer,  who,  lika  Agrippa  and  Paracelsus,  was 
a  man  of  universal  attainments,  and  who,  like  them,  visited  all  the  Universities 
and  courts  of  Europe,  Lucilio  Vanini,  born  in  the  kingdom  of  Naples,  Kved 
as  wretched  and  precarious  a  life  as  they  did,  and  came  to  a  still  more 
miserable  end.  As  M.  Cousin  has  remarked,  Vanini  had  no  other  God  than 
Nature,  and  his  morality  was  that  of  Epicurus.  He  was  burnt  alive,  as  an 
atheist,  at  Toulouse,  upon  the  9th  of  February,  1619. 

France  was,  however,  more  hospitable  for  the  astrologers  and  sorcerers, 
though  the  celebrated  Pierre  La  Ramee,  surnamed  Ramus,  Principal  of  the 
College  of  Presles,  at  Paris,  where  he  himself  taught  philosophy  and  mathe- 
matics m  1545,  opened  an  eloquent  campaign  against  the  extravagances  of 
astrology  (Fig.  79).  But  Ramus  was  one  of  the  apostles  of  the  Reformation, 
and  his  philosophic  reasoning  was  no  match  for  the  allied  forces  of  madmen 
and    impostors    who   dishonoured   true    science.       Cosmo    Ruggieri,    whom 


MA  THEM  A  TIC  A  L   SCIENCES. 


Catherine  de'  Medicis  brought  to  P^ ranee  as  astrologer-royal,  was  not  capable 
of  doing  more  than  compiling  prophetical  almanacs,  and  yet  his  credit  at 
court  extended  over  four  reigns.  As  to  Pierre  dc  Nostredanie,  surnamed 
Nostradamus,  who  set  up  for  astronomer  and  physician,  though  he  had  never 
studied  either  medicine  or  astronomy,  he  merely  observed  the  stars  for  the 
purpose  of  making  predictions  therefi'om,  and  his  mathematical  calculations 
were  confined  to  the  composition  of  horoscojjes.       He  was  in  great  favour 


Fig.  75. — Astronomical  Sextant  for 
measuring  Distances. 


-Equatoriiil  Rings  or 
Circles. 


Fac-simile  of  Copper  Engravings  in  the  Boole,  "Tychonis  Brahe  Aslronomia;   Instauratse 
Mechanica  "  (Noribergae,  apiid  Levinum  Hulsium,  1602,  in  folio). 


with  Charles  IX.  and  the  Queen-mother,  who  loaded  him  with  presents,  bvit 
he  had  the  prudence  to  withdraw  from  the  court  and  live  in  retirement  at 
Salon,  in  Provence,  where  he  died  in  15G6,  leaving  behind  him  a  great 
reputation  and  a  large  fortune.  He  did  not  leave  any  astronomical  work, 
but  merely  some  collections  of  pharmaceutical  receipt,?  and  unintelligible 
prophecies  in  rhymed  verse,  and  written  in  a  mystic  and  barbarous  tongue. 
To  discover  the  true  science  of  astronomy  in  the  sixteenth  century,  it  was 


MATHEMATICAL   SCIENCES. 


necessary  to  go,  not  to  France,  but  to  Poland,  where  Nicholas  Copernicus, 
born  at  Thorn,  in  1473,  had  returned  home,  after  professing  mathematics  at 
Rome,  without  awaking  the  susceptibilities  of  the  Roman  clergy,  who 
would  not  admit  of  the  utterance  of  any  scientific  idea  contrary  to  the  facts 
set  fortli  in  Holy  Writ.  But,  once  settled  at  Frauenburg,  where  he  was 
appointed  to  a  canonry,  he  threw  ofi^  the  reserve  imposed  upon  him  by  the 
fear  of  ecclesiastical  censure,  and  unhesitatingly  declared  that  he  accepted, 
with  certain  rectifications,  the  system  formerly  taught  by  the  philosophers  of 


ENS  EIG  NE.-MOY'M  ON'DIEV. 


A3 1 1  -aisai^D  "j^o-iKb  »ivi. 


•.  "7.— Marque  of  Jehan  St.  Denis,  Bookssller  at  Paris,  Rue  NeulVe  Nostre-Dame,  at  the  Sign 
of  St.  Nicholas:  "Petit  Compost  en  franc's"  (irinted  in  1530,  small  octavo).  "The 
present  hook,  for  the  use  of  simple  persons  who  do  not  understand  Latin,  contains  a  small  and 
easy  process  for  understanding  the  course  of  the  sun  and  moon,  festivals,  and  time  according 
to  the  order  of  the  '  Latin  Compost.'  " 


ancient  Greece,  according  to  which  the  planets  revolved,  from  east  to  west, 
around  the  sun,  while  the  earth  described  two  distinct  motions,  one  of  rotation 
upon  its  own  axis,  the  other  of  circumvolution  around  the  sun.  Copernicus, 
however,  waited  for  some  time  before  publishing  this  system,  which  was 
violently  attacked  by  the  defenders  of  biblical  lore,  and  he  took  the  precaution 
of  dedicating  to  Pope  Paul  III.  his  book,  "De  Revolutionibus  Orbiimi  Ca-les- 
tibus,"  in  M-hich  he  had  expounded  the  whole  of  his  system.     He  did  not  live 


Jl/A  TIIEMA  TICAL   SCIENCES. 


J03- 


to  soo  this  lidok  publislieil,  for  it  appeared  on  the  verj-  da\-  of  bis  death  in 
lo43 ;  and  lie  thus  escajjed  the  posthumous  condemnation  passed  upon  the 
work,  which  was  pkced  in  the  Index  by  the  Court  of  Eome  in  IGIU,  not- 
withstanding its  having  been  dedicated  to  a  pope. 


Fig.  78.— rorlrait  of  Tycho  Brahe,  engraved  by  Uheyn,  at  the  end  of  the  Sixteentli  Century. 
In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


Copernicus  confined  himself  to  astronomy ;  his  successor  and  imitator, 
the  celebrated  Tycho  Brahe  (Fig.  7S),  who  did  lujt,  perhaps,  excel  him,  but  who 
was  in  some  resiiects  his  ecpial   in  liis  li^ai'iicl   treatises  on  Astronomy,  fell  a 


104 


MATHEMATICAL   SCIENCES. 


victim  iu  many  instances  to  the  errors  of  astrology,  and  even  of  eabalism. 
He  had  laboured  in  all  the  observatories  of  Germany  and  Sweden,  when 
the  King  of  Denmark  constructed  for  him  ujDon  the  island  of  Haven,  near 
Copenhagen,  a  magnificent  observatory,  in  which,  for  seventeen  j'ears,  he  fol- 
lowed the  motions  of  the  planets  and  the  stars,  in  order  to  connect  them  with 
the  system  which  he  had  conceived  to  replace  those  of  Ptolemy  and  Copernicus 
(Figs.  73 — 76).  According  to  his  SJ^stem  the  earth  was  motionless  in  the 
centre  of  the  world,  and  the  sun  and  moon  revolved  around  it,  while  the 
other  five  planets  gravitated  around  the  sun.  But  Tj'cho  Brahe,  acceding  to 
the  pressing  invitation  of  the  Emperor  Rudolph  II.,  who  was  anxious  to  get 
him  to  his  court,  turned  astrologer,  in  order  to  obtain  the  pension  which  was 
paid  him,  and  lost  himself  in  the  vagaries  of  eabalism.  He  died  at  Prague 
in  1601,  leaving  behind  him  a  European  reputation,  which  his  works,  very 
inferior  to  those  of  Copernicus,  scarcely  justified. 

And  j'et  Copernicus  and  Tj-cho  Brahe  were  the  creators  of  true  astronomy, 
and  it  may  be  said  in  their  praise  that,  at  a  time  when  astrologers,  necro- 
mancers, and  diviners  were  alone  in  favour,  like  Cosmo  Ruggieri  at  the 
French  court,  and  John  Dee  at  the  court  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  the  observa- 
tions and  systems  of  the  Polish  astronomer  and  the  Danish  astronomer 
inaugurated  a  new  era  in  the  scientific  world,  and  opened  the  route  which  was 
afterwards  followed,  and  with  so  much  renown,  by  Galileo,  Keppler,  Huygens, 
and  Newton.  As  has  been  remarked  by  the  learned  Dr.  Hoefer,  "  Copernicus 
begat  Keppler,  and  Keppler  begat  Newton.       ~\^Tiat  a  genealogical  tree !  " 

NVLLA      DIES 


SINE     L I N  E  A 

Fig.  79.— Portrait  of  Bernard  Abbatia,  Astronomer  to  the  King.— FHC-simile  of  a  Wood  Engrav- 
ing of  the  "Prognostication  sur  lo  mariage  de  Henry,  roy  de  Navarre,  et  de  Marguerite  de 
France"  (Paris,  Giiillaume  de  Nyverd,  1572,  smaU  octavo).— The  Latin  motto,  "Nulla  dies 
sine  linea,"  signifies  "There's  no  life  without  an  ending,"  or  "There  is  no  day  whijh  is  not 
regulated  by  the  stars." 


NATUKAL   SCIENCES. 


Xatural  Sciences  in  Antiquity.— Their  Decadence  in  the  Middle  Agc.^.— Rural  Economy  in  the 
time  of  CharlemagQe.— The  Monk  Strabus.— Botanical  Gardens. -Botany  aided  by  Medi- 
cine.—Hildegarde,  Abbess  of  Bingen.— Peter  of  Crescentiis.— Vincent  of  Beauvais.-Fables 
and  Popular  Errors.-Jeau  Dondi. -  Bartholomew  Glauvil. -Natuialist  Travellers.- 
Aristotle  and  Pliny  restored  to  honour—Gardens  in  the  Sixteenth  Century.- The  Conquests 
of  Science  in  Travel. -Bernard  Palissy.-G.  Agricola. -Conrad  Gesner.-Methods  of  Botany. 
— Painters  and  Engravers  of  Natural  History. 


HE  great  work  of  Pliny  the  Elder,  wliieh 
eoiituius  in  its  one  hundred  and  tliirty- 
.sevcn  books  the  sum  and  substance  of  all 
the  knowledge  of  antiquity  with  regard  to 
arts  and  sciences,  is  unquestionably  replete 
with  erudition,  but  it  is  als(j  tyjjical  of  the 
extreme  confusion  which  then  jjrevailed  in 
the  domain  of  natural  and  jjliysical  sciences. 
The  tendency  to  sophistry  and  ])aradox,  the 
subtleties  of  dialectics,  had  changed  the 
direction  of  scientific  studies,  and  abrujjth' 
clo,sed  the  broad  vistas  which  the  admirable 
labours  of  Aristotle  oijened  to  the  human  mind,  in  teaching  it  lo  studv 
directly  and  materially  Nature,  which  all  the  ancient  religions  had  made 
divine,  under  the  manifold  form  of  the  gods  and  goddesses  of  paganism 
(Fig.  80).  The  observation  of  facts  and  the  search  of  cau.ses  seemed  to  have 
become  u.seless ;  the  marvellous  and  the  strange  were  preferred  before  simple 
and  logical  truth  ;  and  prevalent  opinions  were  accepted  without  putting  them 
to  the  test  of  criticism  or  the  control  of  experience.  AVith  regard  to  the 
theory  of  the  elements  and  the  three  reigns,  us  to  the  hi.story  of  minerals, 
plants,  and  animals,  the  mo.st  absurd  and  extravagant  fables,  allied  to  the 
wildest   conceptions   of    popular    credulity,     had    become    current.       I'liny, 


io6  NATURAL   SCIENCES. 

however,  whose  statenieuts  were  often  adduced  in  support  of  them,  was  not 
mereljr  an  ohservant  compiler  of  facts ;  he  had  watched  and  studied  for 
himself,  and  he  died  a  victim  to  science,  in  attempting  to  contemplate  too 
closely  the  great  eruption  of  Vesuvius,  which  destroyed  the  cities  of  Pompeii 
and  Herculaneum  (i).c.  79). 

"When  the  Roman  decadence  set  in,  the  natural  sciences,  which  had 
remained  motionless  for  four  centuries,  were  at  the  same  point  as  they  had 
been  left  by  Claudivis  iElianus,  who,  in  his  "  History  of  Animals,"  collected 
without  any  cohesion  the  vague  or  erroneous  notions  which  he  had  gathered 
from  various  Greek  and  Latin  authors  whose  works  are  no  longer  extant. 
These  sciences,  almost  abandoned,  had  been  relegated,  together  with  specu- 
lative philosophy,  amongst  the  misty  conceptions  of  the  sophists,  and  were 
merel}''  interpreted  by  a  few  rhetoricians,  such  as  Nemesianus,  Calpurnius,  and 
Ausonius,  who  translated  in  their  descriptive  poems  the  ideas  of  pagan  antiquity 
as  to  the  phenomena  and  products  of  nature.  Pliny  is  always  cited  in 
works  which  treat  incidentally  of  any  facts  appertaining  to  the  physical 
woi'ld.  Moreover,  in  these  times,  from  the  fourth  to  the  eighth  century,  so 
unfavourable  to  science,  writers,  whether  physicians,  historians,  or  philosophers, 
merely  treated  of  material  things  from  a  utilitarian  jjoint  of  view ;  they 
spoke  of  minerals,  plants,  and  animals  without  reference  to  their  organiza- 
tion, their  shape,  or  their  physiognomy ;  they  examined  and  appreciated  them 
solely  from  the  point  of  view  as  to  the  best  use  that  could  be  made  of  them 
in  industry  or  social  life ;  and  the  only  scientific  classification  they  gave  them 
was  to  place  them  in  the  Hexameron,  or  theory  of  the  six  days  of  the  creation, 
according  to  the  Genesis  of  Moses  (Fig.  81). 

Charlemagne  himself,  notwithstanding  his  great  genius,  does  not  seem 
to  have  taken  any  interest  in  the  study  of  natural  history,  and  we  know 
that  it  was  not  included  in  the  course  of  study  at  the  Palace  School.  The 
Emperor  was  doubtless  familiar  with  all  wild  animals,  from  a  himting  point 
of  view  ;  with  the  domesticated  animals,  from  the  point  of  view  of  rural 
economy,  and  with  plants  in  connection  with  agricidture,  for  he  paid  great 
attention  to  the  care  of  his  lands  and  gardens.  Thus,  in  his  Capitularies,  he 
lays  special  stress  upon  the  good  kinds  of  fruits,  vegetables,  and  grain  for 
the  use  of  the  table,  and  scarcely  gave  a  jjlace  for  the  exotic  vegetables,  &c., 
sent  to  him  from  Spain  and  Greece.  It  was  at  this  epoch  that  a  monk  in 
the  nioiuistery  of  St.  Gall,  ^Valafrid  Straba,  described  with  no  little  accuracy. 


A'AJCA'A/.  .s(7/-:.y('/-:s. 


107 


in  a  Latin  poem  entitled  "  Ildi-tulus,"  tlic  vegetables  which  he  had  culti- 
vated with  his  own  hands.  Another  poet,  almost  his  contemporaiy,  and 
believed  to  be  a  Frenchman,  Macer  Floridus,  also  composed  a  similar  poem 
upon  the  culture  and  virtue  of  herbs,  amongst  which  certain  solanea'  had 
already  been  remarked  as  most  effective  for  curing  various  diseases.  This 
culture  of  medicinal  herbs  took  place  in  most  of  the  monasteries,  and  was  the 


Kg.  80.-ESU8,  the  great  God  of  Nature  among  the  Gauls,  worshipped  in  the  Foresls.-Celtic 
Monument  discovered  at  Paris,  under  the  Choir  of  Notre-Dame,  in  1771,  and  preserved  in  the 
Cluny  Museum. 


origin  of  those  botanical  gardens  which  afterwards  contributed  so  much  to 
the  progress  of  medicine.     (See  below,  chapter  on  Medical  Sciencrs.) 

Though  from  the  eighth  to  the  tenth  century  the  natural  sciences  were 
altogether  neglected  in  the  West,  it  was  not  the  same  with  Eastern  peoples, 
who  sought  not  so  much  to  embrace  the  vast  totality  of  physical  knowledge 
as  to  perfect  themselves  in  the  study  of  materia  mcdica,   for  all  the  sciences 


NATURAL   SCIENCES. 


led  up  to  medicine.  During  the  prosjjerous  reign  of  Al-Ma)isour,  in  the 
eighth  centurj^  a  krge  school  was  founded  at  Bagdad,  which  became  a 
refuo-e  for  the  sciences  when  exiled  from  Athens  and  Alexandria.  There 
were  translated  into  Syriac  the  works  of  Aristotle  and  Galen,  the  two 
lights  of  Greece  and  of  Rome,  whom  the  Arabs  in  turn  translated  for  the  use 
of  their  schools  at  Granada  and  Cordova.  The  legendary  caliph,  Haroun 
Alraschid,  followed  the  example  of  Al-Mansour,  his  predecessor,  and  showed 
still  more  generosity  towards  the  savants.  Ilis  son,  Al-Mamoun,  obedient 
to  these  traditions,  carried  the  love  of  science  so  far  as  to  declare  war  upon 
the  Emjaeror  of  Constantinople,  in  order  to  compel  him  to  send  into  Asia 
Minor  not  onlj^  several  Greek  savants,  but  also  some  ancient  manuscripts 
relating  to  arts  and  sciences. 

The  Arabs  had  before  this  cultivated  several  branches  of  natural  history, 
and  made  some  valuable  botanical  discoveries,  thereby  enlarging  the  domain 
of  materia  medica.  Thus,  in  place  of  the  violent  purgatives,  such  as 
hellebore,  which  were  previously  resorted  to,  the  Arab  doctors  recommended 
the  moderate  use  of  cassia,  senna,  and  tamarinds  :  a  quantity  of  plants 
useful  for  medicinal  purposes  were  brought  from  India,  Persia,  and  Sj^ria  by 
Ehazes.  At  the  same  time  Serapion  the  younger  commentated  Dioscorides, 
and  added  to  that  work  a  description  of  the  newly  discovered  plants ;  and 
A^dcenna  scoured  Bactriana  and  Sogdiana  in  search  of  medicines,  and  espe- 
cially of  vegetable  preparations.  Mesne  wrote  his  treatise  on  Medicine  ("  De 
Re  Medica"),  which,  several  times  translated  into  Latin,  was  used  as  a  manual 
in  all  the  schools  up  to  the  Renaissance.  But,  apart  from  the  materia  medica, 
disorder  and  confusion  prevailed  in  the  works  composed  by  the  Arabs,  who 
were  not  acquainted  with  Aristotle's  "  History  of  Animals,"  or  the  "  History 
of  Plants"  by  Theophrastus,  and  whose  translations  of,  and  commentaries 
upon,  Phny  and  Dioscorides  are  a  mass  of  nonsense,  and  for  the  most  part 
imintelligible. 

Constantine  of  Africa  first  introduced  into  Europe  certain  Arab  works 
upon  the  materia  medica,  but  in  his  own  works,  though  they  give  proof  of  a 
certain  experience  in  practical  medicine,  it  is  easy  to  see  that  he  was  not  well 
informed  in  matters  of  detail,  and  this  because  there  was  a  want  of  method  in 
his  study  of  nature.  Thus,  in  dividing  medicines  into  four  distinct  classes, 
ho  ranged  them  upon  a  sort  of  scale  according  to  their  degree  of  relative 
activity.     At  about  the  same  period  the  natural  sciences  were    represented 


NATURAL   SCIENCES. 


log 


^vitll  11(1  little  rclat  in  the  East  by  several  Aral)  botanists,  siieli  as  Kbn-Taitor, 
a  native  of  Malaga,  who  travelled  into  Asia  to  study  plants  previously  to 
becoming  minister  of  the  Caliph  at  Cairo ;  and  Abdallatif,  author  of  a 
very  accurate  description  of  the  plants  and  animals  of  EgA^^t,  who,  in  the 
dissection  of  a  mummy,  corrected  several  important  errors  which  Galen 
had  made  in  matters  of  osteology.  This  knowledge  of  human  anatomy  is  all 
the  more  remarkable  because  the  law  of  Mahomet  absolutely  forbids  dissection 
of  dead  bodies.      Thus  a  great  part  of  such  science  as  there  then  was  in  the 


Fig.  81.— God  creating   tlie  World  by  Compass.— Mini  iture  frcm   Brnnetto  Latini's  "  Trcsor.' 
Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — In  the  Arsenal  Library,  Puris. 


world  came  directly  from  the  Arabs,  and  especially  from  the  caliphate  of 
Cordova.  It  was  there  that  Gerbert,  who  became,  in  turn,  Archbishop  of 
Rheims,  of  Ravenna,  and  afterwards  Pope,  under  the  name  of  Sylvester  II. 
(999),  repaired  to  increase  his  already  large  store  of  learning,  and  he  may 
claim  the  honour  of  having  imported  into  Italy  the  first  elements  of  the 
natural  sciences.  Otho  of  Cremona  sets  forth  the  facts  relating  to  medicinal 
plants  with  which  he  is  acquainted  in  a  learned  poem  of  fifteen  hundred 
lines;  and  John  of  Milan  summarised,  also  in  verse,  all  the  medical  botany 


NATURAL   SCIENCES. 


of  his  century  in  the  "  Code  of  the  School  of  Salerno,"  a.  work  which  is  not 
devoid  of  importance  from  a  hj^gienic  point  of  view,  but  which  is  very- 
imperfect  in  its  treatment  of  the  natural  sciences. 

Although  the  light  of  science  emanated  chiefly  from  the  Saracen  schools  in 
Spain,  it  was  not  extinguished  when  the  empire  of  the  Caliphs  was  over- 
thrown, and  when  reviving  civilisation  was  once  more  threatened  with  an 
invasion  of  barbarism.  The  Jewish  nation  picked  up  the  scattered  fragments 
of  the  sacred  arts  of  science,  and  divided  them  between  the  various  countries 
of  Europe,  where  the  rabbis  for  some  time  preserved  the  monopoly  of  real 
learning.  Physicians  for  the  most  part,  often  favourites  and  advisers  of  their 
sovereigns,  and  even  of  popes,  they  had  chairs  at  the  Colleges  of  Bologna, 
Milan,  and  Naples,  and  they  substituted  a  new  mode  of  teaching  for  the 
"  Etymologicon  "  of  Isidore  of  Seville,  which  had  been,  since  the  seventh 
century,  the  basis  of  scientific  studies.  The  natural  sciences — amongst 
others,  zoology,  mineralogy,  and  botany — were  doubtless  represented  in  this 
abridged  dictionary  of  human  attainments,  but  Isidore  of  Se^dlle,  at  the 
remote  epoch  when  he  wrote,  was  unable  to  treat  them  save  in  a  sujoerficial  and 
illogical  fashion,  for  want  of  snflficient  experience  and  observation  (Fig.  82). 

The  progress  of  the  natural  sciences  was  not  very  rapid  during  the  twelfth 
century,  but  there  might  already  be  perceived,  in  several  writings  on  those 
subjects,  a  tendency  to  observation  of  facts,  though  no  one  had  yet  conceived 
the  simple  idea  of  interrogating  Nature  herself.  Botany  continued  to  have 
the  preference  of  early  observers,  and  medicine  was  the  starting-point  of  aU 
scientific  investigation.  Amongst  the  works  which  give  the  best  summary  of 
the  opinions  and  principles  of  science,  as  to  plants,  minerals,  and  animals, 
useful  or  noxious,  must  be  mentioned  the  "  Jardin  de  Sante,"  compiled  by 
Hildegarde,  Abbess  of  Bingen,  as  a  very  valuable  collection  of  receipts  to  be 
used  in  cases  of  illness.  Hildegarde,  like  many  other  abbesses  of  her  time, 
was  much  addicted  to  the  study  of  everything  relating  to  the  art  of  healing ; 
she  cultivated  herself  many  medicinal  plants,  and  ascertained  their  respective 
properties.  Thus  a  great  many  monasteries  (Fig.  83)  and  convents  possessed 
not  only  botanical  gardens,  but  also  collections  of  fossils,  minerals,  shells, 
herbs,  and  animals  preserved  by  various  processes  of  desiccation.  This  was 
the  origin  of  those  encyclopaedise  of  the  Middle  Ages,  vast  descriptive  compi- 
lations, full  of  popular  errors,  it  is  true,  but  at  the  same  time  replete  with 
curious  and  interesting  details,  which  have  been  published  in  every  language 


NATURAL   SCIENCES. 


Fig.  82.-Noah's  Ark.^Miniaturo  of  a   Commentary  upon  the  A|,orHlyi,se.— JIamiscript  of  the 
Twelfth  Century.—In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Fiiniin-Didot,  Paris. 


NATURAL   SCIENCES. 


since  the  twelfth  century,  and  which,  with  engravings  that  often  explain 
and  complete  the  text,  are  buried  in  the  great  libraries  without  having  ever 
obtained  the  honours  of  print.  Most  of  these  works  contain  singular  revela- 
tions as  to  the  nature  of  plants  and  of  stones,  as  to  the  usage  and  pro- 
perties of  simples,  as  to  the  hygienic  qualities  of  various  foods,  &c.  Several 
special  and  less  voluminous  treatises,  written  by  certain  doctors  of  the  twelfth 
century,  were  alone  printed  at  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century.  Amongst 
these  latter  may  be  mentioned  a  moral  poem  entitled,  "  Anti-Claudianus,  sive 
de  Officio  viri  boui  et  perfecti,"  which  was  composed  at  the  close  of  the 
twelfth   century  by  the  celebrated  Alain  de    I'lsle,   or   de  Lille,   called  the 


Fig.  83.— Monks   engaged  in   Agriculture. —Capital   Letter   in   the    "  Livre   de  Jurisprudence." 
Manuscript  of  the  Thirteenth  Century.— In  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot's  Library,  Paris. 


Universal  Doctor,  and  M'hieh    contains,    with  a    general    table    of    arts   and 
sciences,  a  number  of  very  sensible  remarks  on  natural  history. 

The  savants  and  philosophers  of  this  epoch  who  had  a  taste  for  natural 
sciences  were  but  commentators  and  compilers,  but  the  thirteenth  century 
produced  observers,  the  first  of  whom  were  those  whom  the  Crusades  and  a 
passion  for  Eastern  travel  took  into  distant  and  hitherto  unexplored  lands, 
where  everything  they  saw  was  strange  and  unknown.  Observations,  imper- 
fect as  they  no  doubt  were,  resulted  from  these  voyages,  in  which  the  curiosity 
was  continually  being  stimulated  by  the  sight  of  novel  objects ;  and  the 
natural  sciences  profited  largely  by  the  expeditions,  whether  political,  com- 


NATURAL   SCIEXCES. 


"3 


mercial,  or  what  not,  which  were  undertaken  in  Asia  and  Africa.  The 
Mendicant  Orders,  Franciscans  and  Grey  Friars,  Dominicans  and  Prcachino- 
Brothers,  whom  the  Church  sent  forth  a.s  her  representatives,  contributed  in 
no  small  degree  to  these  triumjihs  of  natural  history  (Fig.  84).  A  Grey 
Friar,  John  de  Piano  Carpini,  sent  by  the  Pope  upon  a  mission  to  a  Tartar 


Fig.  84.-St.  Francis  of  Assisi  talking  to  the  Birds.— Miniature  from  a  Psalter  of  the  Thirteenth 
Century. — In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


chief  (1246),  was  the  first  Christian  who  penetrated  into  the  savage  regions 
beyond  the  Caspian  .Sea;  another  Grey  Friar,  Guillaume  Picard,  sent  by 
St.  Louis  to  the  residence  of  another  Asiatic  chief,  wrote  a  detailed  account 
of  his  voyage  (12.>'5j  ;  Pierre  Ascelin,  sent  by  the  Pope  into  Mongolia,  and 
Guillaume  de  Rubruquis,  also  sent  by  St.  Louis  into  the  depths  of  Tartaiy 
(1253),  were  alike  monks  of   the  Franciscan  Order.      These  travellers,  in 


J, 4  NATURAL   SCIENCES. 

relating  their  journeys,  did  not  merely  record  what  struck  them  the  most  in 
the  way  of  plants,  animals,  and  stones ;  they  brought  back  to  EurojDe  speci- 
mens which  might  be  of  use  to  science,  and  serve  to  correct  anything  inco- 
herent or  exaggerated  in  what  they  had  written.  The  most  celebrated  Indian 
explorer  of  the  thirteenth  century,  Marco  Polo,  the  Venetian,  who  passed 
more  than  twentj'  years  in  those  then  unknown  lands,  and  who  penetrated  as 
far  as  China,  has  left  a  very  curious  account  of  his  long  journej's,  in  the 
course  of  which  he  relates  all  that  he  saw  or  heard.  Natural  history  occupies 
a  large  place  in  his  stor}%  which  but  too  often  testifies  to  his  ignorance  and 
credulity.     (See  below,  chapter  on  Geographical  Sciences.) 

The  most  prominent  botanists  of  that  period,  always  in  regard  to  the 
materia  niedica,  were :  two  Englishmen,  Gilbert  and  Hernicus  Arviell,  who 
travelled,  the  one  through  Europe,  the  other  through  Asia,  to  study  plants 
and  prepare  treatises  on  botany ;  Simon  de  Cordo,  called  Simon  of  Genoa, 
who  had  undertaken  a  herborising  expedition  into  the  islands  of  the  Archi- 
pelago and  to  Sicil}'',  and  who,  borrowing  largely  from  the  Greek  and  Arab 
writers,  compiled  a  Botanic  Dictionarj' ;  and  Jean  de  St.  Amand,  Canon  of 
Tournay,  who  proceeded  experimentally  to  his  discoveries  in  therapeutics, 
and  devoted  a  remarkable  work  to  the  research  of  the  medicinal  properties  of 
a  certain  number  of  simjjles.  But  the  most  learned  and  experienced  of  these 
botanists  of  the  thirteenth  century  was  Peter  de  Crescenzi,  or  de  Crescentiis, 
born  at  Bologna  in  1230,  a  man  of  mark  both  in  regard  to  birth  and  fortune, 
who  had  a  great  predilection  for  agriculture  and  horticulture,  and  who, 
adding  to  his  own  observations  all  that  the  ancient  authors  and  those  of  the 
Middle  Ages  had  written  about  the  vegetable  productions  of  nature,  com- 
piled a  sort  of  agronomical  encyclopaedia  called  "Opus  Ruralium  Commo- 
dorum."  This  great  work,  replete  with  information,  judicious  advice,  and 
excellent  practical  notions,  was  translated  into  several  languages,  and 
especially  into  French,  by  order  of  King  Charles  V.,  and  called  "  Livre  des 
Prouffits  ehampestres  et  ruraux." 

Peter  de  Crescenzi  treated  but  one  side  of  natural  history,  but  three  of 
his  contemporaries,  Vincent  of  Beauvais,  Albertus  Maa-nus,  and  Arnaud  de 
Villeneuve,  entered  upon  the  study  of  this  science  in  a  spirit  of  observation 
which  embraced  all  its  aspects.  They  were,  in  fact,  astrologers,  alchemists, 
theologians,  and  physicians  first ;  naturalists  afterwards.  Vincent  of  Beau- 
vais, a  Dominican  monk,  who  had  translated  the  story  of  the  vovage  of  John 


A\l  IT 7v'.  1 L    SCIE.XCES. 


"5 


cle  Piano  Carpiui  in  Great  Tartaiy,  became  enamoured  of  those  distant 
expeditions,  which  he  looked  upon  as  coufirmatoiy  of  the  strangest  tales 
of  antiquity  related  by  Pliny.  These  fables  he  consequently  embodied 
in  his  enormous  encyclopaedia,  the  "Speculum  Naturale,"  not  omitting  any 
of  the  superstitious  errors  of  his  time.  According  to  him,  the  mandragora 
was  of  the  same  shape  as  the  human  body ;  the  winged  dragon  was  cajiable 
of  flying  off  with  an  ox,  and  devouring  it  in  mid-air ;  the  Scythian  lamb,  a 
sort  of  animal-j)lant,  was  attached  to  the  ground  by  a  stem  and  b\-  roots ;  and 


Fig.  8.1. —  "How  Alexander  fought  the  Dragons  and  a  species  of  Beast  called  Scorpion." — 
Miniature  of  a  Manuscript  of  the  Thirteenth  Century,  No.  1 1 ,040. — In  the  Burgundy  Library, 
Brussels. 


the  tree  of  life,  or  the  weeping-tree,  was  to  be  found,  like  a  living  allegory,  in 
the  harems  of  the  East.  Vincent  of  Beauvais  related  wonderful  stories  about 
the  basilisk  serpent,  repeated  the  old  legend  of  the  tenderness  of  the  pelican 
towards  her  young,  spoke  of  the  never-ending  flight  of  the  phoenix,  and 
declared  that  in  Scotland  the  fruits  of  certain  trees,  when  they  fall  into  the 
water,  produce  black  ducks  of  the  species  temied  black  divers.  (See  the 
chapter  on  Popular  Superditiom.)  This  shows  that  natural  historj^  was  still 
in  its  infancy  in  the  reign  of  St.  Louis  (Figs.  85,  87,  and  95). 

Albertus  Magnus,  the  illustrious  Albert  de  Bollstadt,  was  not,  perhaps, 


,,6  NATURAL   SCIENCES. 


more  learned  than  Vincent  of  Beanvais,  but  he  was  a  greater  logician,  and 
ought  not  to  have  been  subjected  to  the  insult  of  being  credited  with  the 
authorship  of  a  wretched  rhapsody  called  the  "  Secrets  of  the  Great  Albert," 
and  of  several  similar  productions,  which,  though  equally  unworthy  of  him, 
were  even  more  read  than  some  of  the  most  learned  books  which  he  really  did 
write.  But,  in  resj)onse  to  the  aspirations  of  science  in  the  Middle  Ages,  he 
had  written  treatises  upon  the  properties  of  plants,  stones,  and  animals,  which 
were  afterwards  disfigured  and  misrepresented  by  shameless  charlatans. 
Arnaud  de  Villenexive,  whose  learning  has,  without  sufficient  grounds  as  it 
seems,  been  compared  to  that  of  Albertus  Magnus,  had  to  submit,  like  the 
latter,  to  a  blundering  and  imfair  interpretation  of  his  doctrines.  He  had 
studied  in  the  schools  of  Italy  and  in  that  of  Montpellier  before  coming  to 
teach,  in  the  University  of  Paris,  medicine  and  botany,  philosophy  and 
astrology.  This  was  the  first  time  that  lessons  in  natural  history  were 
taught  concurrently  with  theology  and  medicine.  The  immense  number  of 
hearers  lent  still  greater  notoriety  to  these  lessons,  in  which  the  professor 
boldly  declared  that  the  most  solema  mysteries  of  the  Catholic  faith  were  to 
be  explained  by  the  teachings  of  natural  history  and  experimental  physics. 
Scientific  teaching  so  opposed  to  the  dogmas  of  the  Church  excited  the  alann 
of  the  Inquisition,  and  Arnaud  de  Villeneuve  was  accused,  not  of  impiety  or 
heresy,  but  of  sorcery  and  magic.  It  was  only  through  the  special  protection 
of  Charles  of  Anjou,  King  of  Naples  and  Sicily,  that  he  was  enabled  to  leave 
France  without  appearing  before  the  tribunal  of  the  Inquisition,  and  he 
sought  a  refuge  at  the  court  of  this  French  prince,  who  retained  him  as 
physician.  Arnaud  de  Villeneuve  fomid  at  Naples  and  Palenno,  where  he 
had  established  his  residence,  greater  facilities  than  he  would  have  enjoyed 
elsewhere  for  completing  his  studies  in  natural  history,  for  this  science 
appears  to  have  been  specially  favoured  at  the  court  of  the  kings  of  the 
house  of  Anjou,  as  at  that  of  the  kings  of  the  house  of  Arrag-on.  After  the 
Sicilian  Vespers,  Arnaud  de  Villeneuve  quitted  the  service  of  Charles  II.,  and 
attached  himself  for  the  rest  of  his  life  to  the  court  of  Frederick  II.,  who, 
more  than  any  other  sovereign  of  his  time,  favoured  the  study  of  the  natural 
sciences.  This  king  of  the  Two  Sicilies  had  Aristotle's  "History  of  Animals" 
translated  into  Latin ;  he  went  to  great  expense  in  forming  a  collection  of 
the  rarest  animals  for  his  royal  menagerie  from  Asia  and  Africa ;  and  the 
"  Treatise  on  Falconry,"  which  ho  found  time,  anoidst  the  political  anxieties 


A\4  TL  -RA  L   SCIENCES. 


"7 


of  his  reign,  to  compose   himself,   shows  that    he  was  very   well  versed  in 
everything  relating  to  birds  of  prey. 

The  study  of  natural  sciences  had  become  more  general  and  complete  by 
the  beginning  of  the  fourteenth  century-,  though  observations  from  nature 
were  not  yet  given  the  preference  over  the  ancient  descriptions  to  be  found 
in  the  Greek,  Latin,  and  Arab  authors.  The  difficulty  of  recognising  under  its 
Arab  name  a  plant  described  by  Dioscorides  also  led  to  endless  confusion. 
Thus,  for  instance,  ^latthew  Sylvaticus  of  Mantua,  who  possessed  a  suj)erb 
botanical  garden  at  Salerno,  had  great  difficulty  in  putting  the  right 
names  to  his  plants  and  ascertaining  their  specific  qualities ;  for,  though  he 
knew    Greek,  he  was   ignorant  both    of   Arabic    and    Hebrew,    and    hence 


Fig.  86. — "  IIow  Alexander  fought  the  Dratjona  with  Shfrp'a  Horns  upon  their  Foroherids." — 
Miniature  of  a  Manuscript  of  the  Thirteenth  Century,  No.  1 1,010. — In  the  Bui-gundy  Lihiary, 
Brussels. 


arose  the  absurd  error.s  in  his  nomenclature.  The  writings  of  Diuo  del 
Garbo,  the  Florentine ;  of  John  Ardern  of  Newark,  the  Englishman ;  and 
of  several  other  botanists  were  almost  valueless  for  the  same  reasons.  But 
James  Dondi  and  his  son,  John  dall'  Orologio,  who  worked  in  concert  about 
the  middle  of  the  fourteenth  century  at  a  perfected  Codex  of  the  materia 
medica,  lived  at  Eologna,  and  studied  only  the  native  plants,  which  they 
have  described  with  great  precision  and  accuracy  in  their  book  on  Simples, 
written  in  I^atin,  with  the  title  of  "Liber  de  Medicamentis  Simplicibus,"  and 
translated  into  Italian  as  the  "  Herbolario  Vulgare."  Another  book,  inferior 
to  the  above  in  every  respect,  but  very  much  better  known,  was  that  oi 
Bartholomew  Glanvil,  an  Phiglish  monk,  who  compiled,  for  the  benefit  of 


;,8  NATURAL   SCIENCES. 


the  wealthy,  an  encyclopseclia  of  natural  history,  filled  with  popular 
stories  and  a  mass  of  worthless  erudition.  This  singular  work,  written  in 
Latin — it  was  styled  the  "Liber  de  Proprietatibus  Rerum" — had  a  great 
reputation  so  late  as  the  sixteenth  century  ;  it  was  translated  into  French  by 
Brother  Jean  Corbichon,  under  the  amphibological  title  of  "  Proprietaire  des 
choses,"  at  the  request  of  King  Charles  V.,  and  it  was  one  of  the  works  most 
frequently  published  in  different  languages  when  printing  was  first  invented. 
A  like  honour  was  reserved  for  the  treatises  which  Albert  of  Saxony,  Bishop 
of  Halberstadt,  had  imitated  after  the  analogous  treatises  of  Aristotle  and  of 
Albertus  Magnus,  and  which  enumerated  the  more  or  less  problematical 
properties  of  plants,  minerals,  and  animals  (Fig.  88).  In  the  fifteenth 
century  a  light  shone  upon  the  darkness  of  the  natural  sciences,  and  this 
light  was  the  art  of  designing,  by  which  a  precise  and  unvarying  form  was 
given  to  the  objects  described.  A  German  of  the  Rhine  provinces,  whose 
very  name  has  been  forgotten,  conceived  the  idea  of  executing  a  work  of 
natural  history,  embellished  with  paintings  intended  to  illustrate  the  writer's 
descriptions.  This  book,  entitled  "  Das  Buch  der  JSTatur,"  was  in  reality  an 
abridged  translation  of  Martin  de  Cantimpre's  Latin  work,  "  De  Rerura 
Natura ;  "  but  it  contained  a  description  of  various  animals,  trees,  and  shrubs, 
represented  by  figures,  which  in  their  drawing  and  colouring  were  very  true 
to  nature.  This  book  earned  him  such  great  celebrity  that  it  was  one  of  the 
first  books  on  natural  history  which  the  printing-press  multiplied  throughout 
Germany  as  early  as  1475,  when  the  first  edition  appeared  at  Augsburg. 
Wood  engraving  was  henceforward  the  handmaiden  of  printing,  and  they 
combined  in  offering  to  the  ej'es  and  to  the  mind  some  elementary 
notions  of  the  natural  sciences.  Printing,  which,  driven  from  its  mys- 
terious sanctuary  by  the  siege  and  sack  of  Mayence  (1462),  had  made  its 
way,  with  its  typographers  and  engravers,  into  the  great  cities  of  Italy, 
stimulated  the  rivalry  of  philologists  and  savants  in  bringing  to  light  the 
literary  productions  of  ancient  Greece  and  Rome.  Aristotle,  Theophrastus, 
Dioscorides,  and,  still  more,  Pliny,  at  once  found  translators,  commentators, 
and  editors.  As  early  as  the  year  1468  John  Spire  published  at  Yenice  an 
edition  of  Pliny ;  the  following  year  the  German  printers,  Sweynheim  and 
Arnold  Pannartz,  published  at  Rome  a  new  edition,  also  in  folio,  re^dsed  and 
corrected  by  the  great  philologist,  Andrew,  Bishop  of  Aleria.  Two  years  after- 
wards a  French  printer  settled  at  Venice,  Nicholas  Jenson,  published  an  edition 


NATURAL   SCTEXCES. 


119 


not  inferior  to  either  of  the  above.     The  Greek  texts  of  Aristotle  and  Diosco- 
rldes  were  not  published  until  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century ;  but  as 


Fig.  87.— Thft  Marine  World  according  to  the  Conceptions  of  the  iliddlu  Ages.— '■  Uow  Alexander 
lowered  himself  into  the  Sea  in  a  Glass  Barrel."— Miniature  of  a  Manuscript  of  the  Thirteenth 
Century,  No.  11,010.— In  the  Burgundy  Library,  Brussels. 

early  as  the  year  1476,  the  "History  of  Animals,"  so  long  neglected,  or,  to 
speak  more  correctly,  eclip.sed  by  (he  philosophical  treatises  of  the  illustrious 
peripatetic  of  Stagira,  was  translated  into  Latin  by  Theodore  Gaza. 


NATURAL  SCIENCES. 


The  numerous  treatises  and  large  works  on  natural  liistory  printed  in  the 
fifteenth  century  show  how  eagerly  this  science  was  studied.  Those  of 
Albertus  Magnus,  whether  really  written  by  him  or  only  attributed  to  him, 
had  an  immense  circulation.  The  encyclopaedic  compilation  of  Bartholomew 
Glanvil,  "  De  Proprietatibus  Rerum,"  notwithstanding  its  deficiencies  and 
errors,  Avas  reprinted  ten  times  in  Latin  and  in  French,  Avhile  it  was  being 
translated  into  English,  Spanish,  and  Dutch,  to  appear  almost  simultaneously 
at  London,  Tolosa,  and  Haarlem.  The  excellent  work  of  Peter  Crescenzi 
("  Ruralium  Commodorum  Libri  XII."),  which  obtained  the  honour  of  passing 
throuo-h  fifteen  or  twenty  editions  before  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century, 
was  also  translated  into  several  languages.      These  large  folios  did  not,  of 


~| -±  cljicii  DC  tner  eft  ome  bcfieen  to  met  qui  fa  murzfCtbn 

I K  ] picntetfutloterteetctttflCt-migccitlamettotnemig 

Fig.  88.— The  Sea-Dog.— Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving  in  the  "  Dyalogue  des  Creatures " 
(Gouda,  Gerart  Leeu,  1482,  iu  folio).— In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


course,  reach  the  country-people,  to  whom  some  knoAvledge  of  natural  history 
was  indispensable ;  and  this  knowledge,  which  they  had  acquired  by  practice 
and  tradition,  was  popularised  by  the  miniatures  of  the  calendars  placed  in 
the  frontispieces  of  books  of  devotion  (Fig.  89),  and  by  Avood  engravings, 
which  also  ornamented  these  calendars.  The  same  subjects  were  also  illus- 
trated in  a  quantity  of  almanacs,  the  most  celebrated  of  which  is  the 
"  Compost  et  Kalendrier  des  Bergers." 

The  usefulness  of  plates  in  a  book  upon  natural  history  Avas  so  generally 
recognised  (Fig.  90)  that  no  book  upon  botany  appeared  Avithout  some  wood 
engravings,  Avhich  were  not  always,  as  may  Avell  be  supposed,  ver}'  true  to 
nature.     It  was  at  this  period  that  a  Lubeck  burgomaster  called  Arndes  Avent 


.^' 1  TURAL   SCIEXCES. 


to  Palestine,  taking  with  him  a  draftsman  who  was  to  sketch  for  him  the 
plants  which  grew  in  the  Levant.  But  as  the  drawings  which  he  brought 
back  were  not  aceonii:)anied  by  any  text  desci-iption,  a  Mayence  doctor,  one 


Fig.  89. — Shefp-shparing. — Miniature  fri)m  the  "  Three  Ages  of  Man,"  unpuhlishod  Poem 
attributed  to  Estienne  Porohier. — Jtanuscript  of  the  latter  part  of  the  Fifteenth  Century.— 
In  the  Library  of  BI.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 

John  de  Cuba,  was  intrusted  with  writing  the  text  after  the  botanical  works 
of  the  Arabs ;  and  in  this  way  were  perpetuated,  at  great  cost,  the  ancient 

R 


NATURAL   SCIENCES. 


errors  which  hampered  the  development  of  science.  At  the  same  time  it 
must  be  said  that  some  very  interesting  books  on  Herbalism,  enriched  with 
handsome  wood  engravings,  were  published  at  Mayence,  Passau,  and  Louvain 
—some  in  Latin,  and  others  in  German— before  the  great  works  of  Amdes 
and  John  de  Cuba  appeared  at  Lubeck  in  1492. 

At  Venice,  too,  were  being  printed  with  marvellous  rapidity  the  works  of 
the  ancient  Arab  physicians,  Avicenna,  Avenzoar,  Averroes,  and  Mesue, 
who  treated  of  natural  history  in  its  relation  to  medicine ;  and  these  publica- 
tions only  served  to  excite  hostility  against  the  Arabists,  who  had  copied 
Pliny  with  all  his  errors.  A  learned  professor  of  Ferrara,  Nicholas  Leoniceno, 
took  this  opportunity  of  attacking  the  Arabic  school  and  its  admirers,  of 
whom  he  said,  "These  people  never  saw  the  plants  of  which  they  speak; 
they  steal  their  descriptions  from  the  works  of  preceding  authors,  whose 
meaning  they  often  distort :  this  has  led  to  a  veritable  chaos  of  erroneous 
denominations,  the  confusion  being  further  increased  by  the  inaccuracy  of  the 
descriptions."  In  this  literary  war,  which  showed  how  very  imperfect  was 
the  knowledge  of  natural  history  at  the  time  when  Pliny's  work  was  being  so 
widely  disseminated  by  the  printing-press,  Leoniceno  was  unjust  towards  the 
great  Eoman  naturalist,  and  this  he  was  made  to  comprehend  by  the  cele- 
brated Venetian  humanist,  Ermolao  Barbaro,  in  a  reply  in  favour  of  Pliny. 
The  latter,  in  correction  of  the  faults  to  be  found  in  Pliny's  work,  published 
■A  book  entitled  '■  Castigationes  Plinianse,"  but  that  writer's  "  Natural 
History  "  was  for  the  time  discredited  in  most  of  the  schools  in  Italy. 

Taking  advantage  of  this  discredit,  which  increased  the  demand  for  the 
works  of  Aristotle,  Theophrastus,  and  Dioscorides,  the  Aldi,  skiHul  Venetian 
printers,  brought  out  the  origiaal  and  hitherto  unpirblished  texts  of  the 
Greek  naturalists.  Aldus  Manutius  had  himself  revised,  after  the  ancient 
manuscripts,  these  priceless  works,  which  were  so  anxiously  scanned  by  the 
lovers  of  antiquity.  They  published  at  about  the  same  time  other  modem 
works  upon  natural  history,  amongst  them  being  several  treatises  of  Georges 
Valla  upon  plants,  and  a  Botanic  Lexicon  after  the  Greek  authors.  The  study 
of  botany  was  also  ia  great  favour  amongst  French  savants.  A  Parisian 
printer,  Pierre  Caron,  published,  about  1495,  "  L'Arbolayre,"  a  new  herbal 
dictionary,  illustrated  with  a  great  many  wood  engravings ;  and  this  work, 
extracted  from  the  medical  treatises  of  Avicenna,  Rhazes,  Constantino,  Isaac, 
and  Plateaire,  was  reprinted,  with  the  title  of  "  Grand  Herbier  en  Francois," 


NATURAL   SCIENCES. 


'^3 


by  six  or  eight  Paris  publishers.  Botanj'  seemed  to  hold  the  first  place  in 
natural  history,  and  the  discovery  of  America  by  Christopher  Columbus  in 
1492  gave  a  fresh  impetus  to  the  study  of  the  flora  of  that  great  continent. 

The  precious  metals  were  at  first  the  only  articles  of  importation,  but 
it  was  soon  found  that  the  materia  medica  might  be  greatly  increased  by 
the  vegetable  growth  of  the  New  World,  and  the  disinterested  love  of  science 
mduced  several  learned  men  to  cross  the  ocean.  Italian,  German,  Spanish, 
and  Portuguese  naturalists  applied  themselves  with  zeal  to  examining  and 


Fig.  90.-Eiver  Fishing.-Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving  in  a  Latin  Edition  of  Pliny 
(Frankfort,  1.584,  in  folio). 

testing  the  numerous  productions  of  this  newly  discovered  land.  Other 
naturalists,  passing  by  the  marvels  of  the  American  continent,  devoted  their 
attention  to  Asia,  which  they  explored  to  more  purpose  than  their  pre- 
decessors had  done.  In  presence  of  a  nature  absolutely  new  and  unknown, 
the  first  naturalists  who  visited  America  wore  obliged  to  abandon  the  teach- 
mg  of  the  past,  and  rely  upon  the  results  of  their  own  direct  and  personal 
observations.  This  brought  about  a  complete  revolution  in  science.  Travels 
reaUy  useful  for  pui-poses  of  natural  history  became  general.  Jean  Leon, 
sumamed  the  African,  visited  Egypt,  Arabia,  Armenia,  and  Persia,  noting 
with  great  care  the  various  characteristics  presented  by  the  three  kingdoms. 


,,^  NATURAL   SCIENCES. 


Peter  Martyr  (Pietro  Martire  d'Anghiera),  while  on  a  diplomatic  mission  in 
the  East,  verified  upon  the  spot,  book  in  hand,  the  statements  of  Aristotle, 
Theophrastus,  and  Dioscorides ;  John  Manardi,  a  doctor  of  Ferrara,  her- 
borised in  Poland  and  Hungary ;  and  Jacques  Dubois,  the  Amiens  doctor, 
surnamed  Sylvius,  travelled  all  through  France,  Germany,  and  Italy  in  order 
to  study  nature. 

Gradually  the  taste  for  scientific  travel  became  general,  and  bore  its 
natural  fruits.  Valuable  collections  of  natural  history  were  formed,  exotic 
plants  were  acclimatised,  and  animals  domesticated.  Horticulture  became  a 
practical  science  ;  to  kitchen  and  fruit  gardens  were  added  pleasure-grounds ; 
and  it  was  a  Metz  priest.  Master  Francois,  who  invented  the  "herbaceous 
ingraftment,"  the  secret  of  Avhich  has  only  recently  been  recovered.  The 
culture  of  many  new  plants  gave  still  further  development  to  botany,  which 
had  its  special  chairs  in  most  of  the  leading  Universities  ;  and  those  of  Ferrara, 
Bologna,  and  Padua  had  the  advantage  of  being  filled  by  Ghini  and 
Brasavola.  The  best  botanists  were  the  doctors,  whose  main  object  was  to 
extend  the  domain  of  the  materia  medica,  and  who  all  published  large  books 
written  in  Latin  and  replete  with  engravings :  Otho  Brunf  els,  of  Mayence, 
his  "  Herbarum  ViviB  Icones  "  (1530-36)  ;  Euricius  Cordus,  of  Cologne,  whose 
son  Valerino  became  one  of  the  greatest  botanists  in  Germany,  his  "  Botano- 
logicum "  (1534)  ;  and  Leonard  Fuchs,  a  Bavarian,  his  "  Commentarii 
Insignes"  (1542).  It  would  be  impossible  to  enumerate  here  all  the  works 
on  natural  history,  on  botany  more  particularly,  which  appeared  during  the 
first  half  of  the  sixteenth  century  in  Germany,  Holland,  and  Italy,  and 
which  testify  to  the  vigorous  growth  of  the  new  science.  It  must,  however, 
be  said  that,  out  of  the  countless  cosmopolitan  travellers  who  went  to  the 
West  Indies  in  search  of  fortime,  one  only,  Gonzales  Fernandes  of  Oviedo, 
brought  back  with  him  the  materials  for  a  really  important  work  on  natural 
history.  This  work  he  entitled  "  La  Historia  general  y  natural  de  las  Indias  " 
(Seville,  1535,  in  folio),  and  it  contains  a  very  accurate  description  of  the 
animals,  trees,  shrubs,  and  plants  of  Southern  Arherica. 

France,  whose  artists  had  enriched  so  many  liturgical  and  religious  mami 
scripts  (Fig.  91)  with  paintings  of  flowers,  birds,  butterflies,  and  insects 
very  readily  took  part  in  the  study  of  natural  history.  Charles  Estieime 
anatomist  and  botanist,  one  of  the  most  distinguished  members  of  the  famuy 
of  Parisian  printers  which   conferred  so  much  renown   upon  the  name  of 


XA  Ti  'RA  I.  scii:x(  'i-:s. 


Estienne,  composed  several  short  treatises 
on  agronomy,  horticulture,  botany,  and 
sylviculture,  which,  together  with  his  vo- 
cabulary of  natural  history,  were  fi-e- 
quently  reprinted.  These  various  treatises 
afterwards  collected  iuto  one,  constituted  a 
great  work  entitled  "  Prtcdium  Rusticum," 
which  his  son-in-law,  Liebaut,  popularised, 
translating  it  into  French,  with  several 
additions,  and  calling  it  the  "  Maison  Rus- 
tique."  Gardening  became  the  fashion  in 
France,  and  every  one  was  anxious  to  pos- 
sess some  new  plant  or  some  flower  brought 
from  a  great  distance.  The  royal  gardens 
at  Fontainebleau  and  Chambord  were  laid 
out  at  great  expense,  and  made  models  ot 
what,  as  it  was  then  considered,  kitchen, 
fruit,  and  flower  gardens  ought  to  be.  The 
gardens  of  the  Chateau  d'Alencon,  laid  out 
under  the  instructions  of  Marguerite,  sister 
of  Francois  I.,  were  specially  famous.   IMore- 


m 


I  r^.!§Hi  i-it 


Fig.  91.— Border  of  !i  Page  in  Miinuscnpt  ot  thi'  l-  ilteiiitli  f'entur)-,  "  Vie  de  St^  Jeiuine."— In  tho 
Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


,26  NATURAL   SCIENCES. 

over,  princes  and  prelates,  nobles  and  jjlebeians,  seemed  to  take  an  interest  in 
horticidture  :  the  greater  was  political  agitation,  tlie  greater  seemed  the  attrac- 
tions of  coimtry  life.  Cardinal  de  Chatillon  had  magnificent  plantations  at 
Maillezais,  of  which  place  he  was  bishop ;  and  Francois  Rabelais,  during 
his  stay  at  Rome,  sent  him  various  kinds  of  seeds  and  plants  which  were 
imported  into  France  for  the  first  time,  and  became  indigenous.  The  two 
leading  statesmen  of  this  period.  Cardinal  du  Bellay  and  Cardinal  de 
Lorraine,  also  deserve  mention  in  the  history  of  gardening,  for  they 
encouraged  the  pursuit  of  botany,  and  sought  repose  from  the  cares  of 
state,  the  one  at  the  Abbey  of  St.  Maur,  and  the  other  at  the  Chateau  de 
Meudon,  where  they  passed  their  time  amidst  the  trees  and  flowers.  At 
this  period  there  were  no  public  botanical  gardens  in  France,  like  those  of 
Passau  in  Bavaria,  and  of  Pisa  and  Florence  in  Italy,  though  Jean  Ruel, 
Dean  of  the  Paris  Faculty  and  physician  to  Francois  I.,  explained  in  his 
valuable  work,  "De  Natura  Stirpium"  (Paris,  1536,  in  folio),  the  necessity 
of  creating  such  a  garden  for  the  teaching  of  practical  medicine. 

The  era  of  Transatlantic  voyages,  which  followed  the  discovery  of  America, 
was  a  very  fruitful  one,  and  the  maritime  voyages  of  discovery  and  conquest 
were  succeeded  by  scientific  voyages.  Distant  lands,  drawn  closer  to  Europe 
by  the  ties  of  commerce,  were  opened  for  the  researches  of  science.  The  first 
facts  of  natural  history,  collected  from  beyond  the  seas,  both  from  East  and 
West,  from  Mexico  and  Brazil  as  from  China  and  Japan,  were  due  to  the 
Jesuits,  who  have  left  us  true  and  interesting  accounts  of  the  countries  into 
which  they  carried  the  standard  of  Christianity.  Valuable  information  was 
also  given  by  the  diplomatic  agents  in  foreign  countries.  Busbecq,  who  was 
the  ambassador  of  three  German  emperors  in  Turkey,  took  with  him  the 
learned  naturalist  of  Sienna,  Andrew  Mattioli,  to  assist  him  in  his  botanical 
researches.  Pelicier,  French  ambassador  at  Venice,  had  as  his  secretary  and 
physician  the  learned  Guillaume  Rondelet ;  and  Cardinal  du  Bellay,  ambas- 
sador of  Fran9ois  I.  to  the  Holy  See,  attached  to  his  suite  the  great  Eabelais 
in  a  similar  capacity,  who,  however,  has  not  left  us  any  of  the  works  he  may 
have  composed  during  his  travels  in  Italy.  Guillaume  Rondelet,  on  the  other 
hand,  published  several  works  on  Ornithology  and  Ichthyology.  A  French 
naturalist  still  more  celebrated,  Pierre  Belon,  who  accompanied  Cardinal  de 
Tournon  in  several  of  his  diplomatic  missions,  was  supplied  by  him  with  the 
means  of  travelling  in  Palestine,  Egypt,  and  Arabia,  where  he  completed  and 


NATURAL   SCIENCES.  127 


revised  two  monographs  which  he  had  in  preparation  upon  birds  and  fishes ; 
and  these  two  works  he  published  upon  his  return  from  his  travels  (lool  and 
1555),  with  illustrations  which  he  had  himself  made  after  nature,  but  which 
were  not  all  of  them  accurate. 

Two  men  of  genius — one  a  Gennau,  George  Agricola,  the  other  a  Swiss, 
Conrad  Gesner — divided  supremacy  at  that  time  in  the  domain  of  natural 
history.     The  first  occupied  the  position  in  regard  to  mineralogy  which  the 
latter   held   in   botany   and    zoolog}\     George  Landman   Agricola,  born  at 
Chemnitz,  in  Saxony,  in  1494,  had  studied  in  the  Universities  of  France  and 
Italy;    while   Gesner,  born  at   Zurich  in  1516,   had  been  educated    in    the 
schools  of  Paris  and  Montpellier.     Agricola  at  first  practised  medicine,  and 
distinguished  himself   by  his    experiments    in    regard   to  what    was    called 
chemical  inedicine.     The  study  of  chemistry  led  up  to  that  of  mineralogy,  and 
he  devoted   his  whole  time  to  the  latter  science,  exploring  the  mines   of 
Bohemia  and  Saxony.      It  was  in  this  way  that  he  acquired  a  profound 
knowledge  of  everything  relating  to  the  working  of  metals.     In  his  works 
on  Mineralogy  the  chemical  part  is  treated  with  as  much    precision    and 
learning  as  the  docimastic  part.     These  great  works,  translated  into  difl'erent 
languages,  and  of  which  several  editions  were  printed,  earned  for  him  more 
reputation   than   profit,   as  he  emploj'ed    all  his   means    in    making    costlj- 
researches   and    experiments.       Conrad    Gesner    did    not    attempt    to    rival 
Agricola  upon  the  field  of  mineralogy,  turning  his  attention  more  specially 
to  the  study  of  animals  and  of  plants.     He  was,  in  reality,  the  originator  of 
scientific  botany.     Classing  the  plants  by  genus  and  kind,  he  was  the  first  to 
discover  the  means  of  recognising  each  genus  and  kind  by  examining  the  organs 
of  fructification.     In  this  way  he  discovered  more  than  eighteen  hundred  new 
kinds.     His  intention  was  to  publish  a  work  upon  the  natural  history  of  the 
whole  world,  and  his  erudition  would  have  enabled   him  to  complete  this 
immense  task  had  his  life  been  spared,  but  he  only  lived  long  enough  to 
write  the  first  four  books  of  his  "History  of  Animals"  (1551,  1554,  1555, 
and  1558),  which  comprised  the  viviparous  and  oviparous  tribes,  the  birds 
and  the  fishes.     His  pupils,  Gaspard  Wolff  and  Joachim  Camerarius,  were 
his  executors,  and  they  published  the  incomplete  materials  which  he  had  left 
behind  him  in  regard  to  the  vegetable  kingdom,  the  serpents,  and  the  fossils. 
Gesner,  who  passed  nearly  all  his  life  in  his  study  at  Zurich,  was  in  per- 
manent communication  with  the  principal  travellers  of  his  day,  such  as  Andre 


a  NATURAL   SCIENCES. 

I  2o 


Thevet  and  Pierre  Gilles ;  with  the  leading  naturalists,  suet  as  Rondelet, 
Belon,  and  Aldroyandus;  with  the  greatest  botanists,  such  as  Dalechamp, 
Maranda,  Adam  Lonicer,  and  Rainbert  Dodoens,  surnamed  Dodon^us.  The 
books  of  Gesner  may,  therefore,  be  looked  upon  as  the  store  in  which  were 
deposited  all  the  facts  and  discoveries  in  natural  history  during  his  day. 

Gesner's  works  show  that  at  this  period  science,  notwithstanding  the  want 
of  classification  which  militated  against  an  harmonious  and  complete  con- 
ception of  the  work  of  nature,  had   reached  a  very  advanced    stage.     All 
that  remained  was  to  submit  the  mass  of  information  to  a  philosophic  and 
methodical  classification.     Thus,  in  that  part  of  his  great  work  which  Gesner 
published  himself,  after  ranging  the  animals  alphabetically,  with  their  Latin 
names   followed   by  those   used   in  different   languages,  he  describes   them 
minutely,  indicating  their  origin,  their  varieties,  their  habits,  their  diseases, 
their  utility  in  domestic  economy,  industry,  medicine,  and  arts,  and  quoting, 
in  reference  to  each,  the  different  passages  which  he  had  extracted  from 
ancient  and  modern  authors.      Belon,   although   less   erudite  than  Gesner, 
attempted  to  class  the  birds  according  to  their  instinctive  habits,  and  in  some 
cases  according  to  their  external  appearance ;  but  he  had  no  settled  system,  j 
and  his  most  ingenious  suggestions  failed  to  bring  to  his  knowledge  the 
imvarying  order  of  natural  laws  in  the  fomiation  of  species.     Rondelet  went 
even  further  than  Gesner  and  Belon,  as  he  attempted  to  ascertain  by  com- 
parative anatomy  the  analogies  and  differences  of    species,  but  he  did  not 
succeed  in  establishing  a  general  and  systematic  plan  in  zoology.     Botany 
was  much  further  advanced  than  the  other  branches  of  natural  history,  for 
Gesner  not  only  discovered  the  elements  for  the  classification  of  plants,  but 
the  conscientious  researches  of   a  number  of   excellent   botanists  advanced 
further  and  further  the  frontiers  of  a  science  which  embraced  the  whole 
vegetable  world.     Though  henceforward  the  method  of  observation  was  the 
only  one  admitted  in  scientific  matters,  the  books  of  the  ancient  naturahsts 
were  translated  and  commentated,  and  Aristotle,  Theophrastus,  Dioscorides, 
and  Pliny  recovered  full  authority. 

There  was,  however,  a  man  of  genius  who,  knowing  nothing  of  Greek  or 
Latin,  and  devoid  of  all  regular  education,  discovered  the  fundamental  bases 
of  nature,  which  were  only  recognised  three  centuries  later,  and  who,  as  far 
back  as  the  sixteenth  century,  established  the  principles  upon  which  repose 
geology,   physics,    and   natural   history.      This    was  a  humble   labourer  m 


NATURAL   SCIENCES. 


I  Z<) 


Periji-ord,  called  l^ernurd  Palissy,  who, 
at  the  age  of  fi\c-and-twenty,  left  his 
nati\e  village,  where  he  had  been  earn- 
ing a  scanty  living  as  a  potter,  and 
started  on  a  journcj',  staff  in  hand 
and  Avallet  on  back,  through  France, 
Germany,  and  Holland,  practising  dif- 
ferent manual  trades — -at  one  time 
glazier,  at  another  geometer,  and  at 
another  designer.  Wherever  he  went 
he  studied  the  topography  of  the  dis- 
trict, the  irregularities  of  the  ground, 
the  course  of  the  streams,  the  mines, 
and  the  natural  productions  and  spe- 
cialities of  the  country.  He  questioned 
the  inhabitants  as  to  the  objects  which 
attracted  his  attention,  and  so  acquired 
for  himself  a  scientific  education  by 
the  sole  force  of  his  own  intelligence. 
After  five  years  of  wandering,  in  the 
course  of  which  he  learnt,  to  use  his 
own  expression,  "  science  with  the 
teeth,"  he  returned  home  and  settled 
in  Saintonge.  While  continuing  his 
trade  of  survej'^or  and  painter  on  glass, 
he  sought  to  discover  the  secret  of 
making  enamelled  pottery  (Fig.  9-2), 
similar  to  that  which  Italy  manu- 
factured with  so  much  skill,  and  whicli 
was  much  in  favour  at  every  court  in 
Europe.  I'alissy  worked  at  this  scheme 
for  ten  or  twelve  years  before  discover- 
ing the  coloured  enamel  which  he  re- 
quired to  cover  the  potterj'.  He  thus  J^' 
equalled  those  whom  ho  had  copied, 
and  he  soon  surpassed  them  by  making 


g.  92  — Ttblt  Oiniment,  from  thf  Palare  of 
the  Bishop  of  Lisieux. — Enamelled  Tottery 
of  the  Sixteenth  Century. — In  the  Collection 
of  M.  Achille  Jubiual. 


ijo 


NATURAL   SCIEXCES. 


vases  and  dishes  -n-liicli  -were  decorated  with  figui-es  of  flo^n-ers,  herbs,  shells, 
insects,  and  reptiles.  Palissy,  whose  earthenware  was  very  highly  esteemed 
when  it  appeared  at  the  French  court,  placed  himself  imder  the  protection 
of  the  Constable  of  Montmorency,  and  obtained  the  title  of  "Inventem- 
des  rustiques  figulines  du  roi."  (See  in  the  vokmie  on  "  Arts,"  chapter  on 
Ceramics.) 

He  was  summoned  to  Paris  by  order  of  the  King,  and  Catherine  de' 
Medicis  gave  him  a  workshop  in  the  gardens  of  the  Tuileries.  It  was  then 
that  he  described,  in  a  course  of  public  lectures,  the  resiilt  of  his  discoveries 
and  his  theories  on  natural  historv.     Referring  to  this,  he  wrote,  "I  dis- 


Fig.  93. — Mark  of  Barthelemy  Berton,  printer  at  Rochelle,  upon  the  Title-page  of  the  "  Discours 
admirahles,"  by  Bernard  Palissy,  published  at  La  Eochelle  in  1563,  small  quarto. 


played  placards  at  the  comers  of  the  streets,  in  order  to  assemble  the  most 
learned  physicians  and  others,  promising  to  explain  to  them  in  tkree  lectures 
all  that  I  knew  in  regard  to  fountains,  stones,  metals,  and  other  bodies.  And 
in  order  that  the  audience  might  consist  only  of  the  most  learned  and  those 
most  anxious  to  insti-uct  themselves,  I  stated  in  my  placards  that  no  one 
woidd  be  admitted  except  on  paj-ment  of  a  cro\vn ;  and  this  I  did  to  see  what 
could  be  advanced  in  opposition  to  my  views,  knowing  well  that  if  I  made 
any  false  statements  they  would  infallibly  be  caught  up."  "We  do  not, 
unfortunately,  possess  any  further  partic\ilars  as  to  these  conferences  at  which 
thirty-two  mo&t  honourable  and  learned  persons  took  part,  in  addition  to  many 


NATURAL   SCIENCES. 


'3' 


others  uot  so  distinguished.  Palissy,  however,  asserts  that  his  statements 
were  not  once  questioned.  He  repeated  his  lectures  every  year,  from  1575, 
with  increased  success,  and  in  1580  he  jniblishcd  his  great  work,  which  was, 
no  doubt,  a  resume  of  his  public  lectures,  entitled  "  Admirable  Discourses," 
&c.  (see  Fig.  9-'3). 


Fig.  94.— The  Vegetable  Kingdom.— Mark  of  Guillaume  Merlin,  Bookseller  at  Paris,  in  the 
middle  of  the  Sixteenth  Century.— The  design  of  this  typugrai)hical  mark  is  attributed  to 
Jean  Cousin. 


It  is  only  since  Palissy's  time  that  geology  has  obtained  a  recognised 
place  in  science.  He  stated  that  the  "  petrified  fish  discovered  in  the  rock 
had  been  born  there  at  a  time  when  the  rocks  were  only  water  and  mud, 
which  became  petrified  sinniltanoously  with  the  fish;"  but  these  views  were 


132 


NATURAL   SCIENCES. 


not  o-enerally  recognised  as  true  until  the  time  of  Cuvier  and  Brongniart. 
Palissy  was  two  or  three  hundred  years  in  advance  of  the  epoch  in  which  he 
lived  for  he  asserted  that  when  the  fossils  were  formed  men  and  certain 
kinds  of  animals  did  not  exist ;  he  distinguished  between  the  water  due  to 
crytallization  and  the  water  of  vegetation  ;  he  laid  down  the  laws  of  the 
affinity  of  salts  in  the  development  of  stones  and  metals;  he  investigated 
the  orio-in  of  clouds,  of  springs,  of  earthquakes,  of  mineral  or  spring  waters, 
and  of  potable  Avaters ;  he  started,  in  fact,  the  great  questions  of  natural 
philosophy,  of  organic    chemistry,  of  mineralogy,   and  of   agronomy.     Yet 


Fig.  94ff. — Mark  of  Charles  Estienne,  Printer  at  Paris,  in  the  First  Edition  of  his  Work  entitled 
"Prtedium  Kusticum." — (See  page  125.) 


Bernard  Palissy  exercised  little  influence  upon  the  science  of  his  day,  and  he 
was  not  looked  upon  as  more  than  a  skilful  potter. 

It  is  triie  that  this  period  of  civil  and  religious  wars  was  not  A-ery  favour- 
able to  the  silent  meditations  of  science,  but  the  naturalists— more  especially 
the  botanists — careless  as  to  what  was  going  on  in  the  political  world,  saA\' 
nothing  and  heard  nothing  of  what  passed  outside  their  studies  (Fig.  94). 

Towards  the  close  of  the  sixteenth  century  there  were  two  savants  who 
discovered  the  true  principles  as  to  the  classification  of  plants.  Matthias 
Lobel,  born  at  Lille  in  1538,  but  who,  after  several  long  botanical  expeditions, 
settled  in  England,  first  of  all  arranged  them  into  families — such  as  the 
grasses,  the  orchids,  the  palm  tribe,  and  the  mosses — and  compared  the  miut 
tribe  and  the  umbelliferous  plants.     Andrew  Cesalpin,  professor  of  botany  at 


A'A  TL  'RA  L   SCIEXCES. 


133 


Pisa,  compared  the  process  of  generation  in  animals  to  the  seed  of  plants, 
distinguishing  male  plants  by  their  stamen,  and  considering  the  plants  which 
yielded  seed  as  female.  He  further  di\ided  plants  into  fifteen  classes,  with 
male  and  female  genders  in  each.  To  Cesalpin,  therefore,  belongs  the  honour 
of  having  invented  the  first  sj^stem  of  botany,  a  branch  of  natural  history 
which  was  studied  verj'  eagerly,  and  the  development  and  progress  of  which 
were  materially  assisted  by  the  numerous  exploring  expeditions  all  over  the 
globe  (Fig.  %\n). 

How  important  were  these  conquests  of  science  may  be  gathered  by 
examining  the  two  thousand  six  hundred  wood  plates  in  the  "  Histoire 
generale  des  Plantes,"  written  in  French,  after  the  notes  of  Jacques  Dale- 
champ,  and  the  two  thousand  five  hundred  plates  in  the  botanical  treatise 
of  the  Alsatian  Jacques-Theodore  Tabernsemontanus,  written  in  German,  and 
published  in  1588-90.  At  that  time  the  rage  was  for  bulky  volumes  with 
abundant  illustrations,  esjiecially  in  regard  to  natural  history  ;  and  yet,  when 
Dr.  Francis  Hernandez  was  ordered  by  Philip  II.,  to  whom  he  had  been 
acting  as  physician,  to  collect  in  one  volume  all  the  animal,  vegetable,  and 
mineral  productions  of  Mexico,  he  could  not  find  during  his  lifetime  a 
publisher  who  would  engrave  the  twelve  hundred  figures  which  he  had  had 
painted  at  a  cost  of  sixty  thousand  ducats.  The  engravings  and  publications 
on  natural  history  which  Theodore  de  Bry  and  his  sons  executed  at  Frank- 
fort had  more  success  when  they  came  out  in  the  splendid  collection  known 
to  bibliographists  as  the  "Grands  et  Petits  Voyages." 


>  W  /  C^ 


Fig.  9.5. — The  Phienix  rising  from  his  Ashps. — Fae-siniilt;  of  a  Wood  Engraving  in  the 
Latin  Edition  of  Pliny  (Frankfort,  1G02,  in  folio). 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


Decline  of  Medicine  after  the  death  of  Hippocrates. — The  School  of  Galen. — The  School  of 
Alexandria. — Talismans  and  Orisons  against  Illness. — Monastic  Medicine. — Female  Doctors. 
— Tlie  Arab  Schools. — The  Schools  of  Naples,  Monte  Casino,  and  Salerno. — The  Hospitallers. 
— The  School  of  Cordova. — Epidemics  coming  from  the  East. — The  appearance  of  Military- 
Surgery. — The  Schools  of  Montpellier  and  Paris. — Lanfranc  as  upholder  of  Surgery. — 
College  of  St.  Cosmo  at  Paris. — Guy  de  Chauliac. — Rivalry  of  the  Surgeons  and  the  Barbers. 
— Medical  Police. — The  Occult  Sciences  ia  Medicine. — Rivalry  of  the  Surgeons  and  the 
Doctors. — The  Doctors  in  the  Sixteenth  Century. — Andrew  Vesalius. — Ambroise  Pare. 


HRISTIANITY,  as  might  be  expected, 
exercised  a  great  and  immediate  influence 
npon  the  practice  and  the  science  of 
medicine.  Christ  healing  the  sick  by  the 
hiying  on  of  hands,  restoring  sight  to 
the  blind  and  making  the  lame  to  walk 
by  an  appeal  to  God,  and  raising  the 
dead  to  life  in  the  name  of  the  Father, 
seemed  to  intimate  to  the  world  that 
prajrer  and  faith  were  the  best  remedies 
against  human  ills. 
Medicine  and  its  indispensable  accompaniment,  the  art  of  surgery,  under- 
went, subsequently  to  the  death  of  Hippocrates,  transformations  due  to  the 
rival  sects  of  dogmatism  and  empiricism,  without  making  any  real  progress. 
Men  of  intelligence,  but  too  hampered  by  scepticism  or  materialism,  such  as 
Themison  of  Laodicea  and  Sorauus  of  Ephesus,  founded  a  new  doctrine  called 
Methodism,  which  made  the  science  of  medicine  rest  upon  the  analogous  and 
mutual  relations  of  the  organic  affections  to  one  another.  This  doctrine, 
which  took  no  account  of  anatomical  studies,  admitted  only  two  principles  or 
causes  of  illness,  stnctum  and  laxum — that  is  to  say,  the  contraction  and  the 
relaxation  of  the  tissues  ;  and  the  invariable  course  of  treatment  was  either 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES.  ,35 


ifh 


to  relax  the  tissues  which  were  too  contracted,  or  to  contract  those  wh 
were    too  rchixed.     The  methodists  had  no  idea  of  the  action  of  the  mind 
upon  the  morbid  state  of  the  human  body. 

It  was  the  i^hilosophy  of  Phito,  renewed  and  revived  in  the  schools,  which 
inspired  the  doctrine  of  pneumatisni,  which  attributed  to  the  soul  (Tn-fJ/xa  in 
Greek)  a  considerable  part  in  the  diseases  of  the  body  as  well  as  in  all  the  acts 
of  human  existence.     Pneumatisni,  adopting  the  fonnula?  of  the  peripatetics, 
and  based  upon  precise  data  of  anatomy,  in  time  gave  birth  to  eclecticism, 
which  was  professed  by  Athenscus  of  Cilicia,  Agathus  of  Sparta,  Philip  of 
Caesarea,  Aretseus  of  Cappadocia,  and,  lastly,  by  Galen,  who  was  the  greatest 
of  the  eclecticians.    Galen,  born  at  Pergamus  in  the  year  i;31  b.c,  studied  in 
the  school  of  Alexandria,  and  it  was  there  that  he  learnt  to  argue  with  much 
talent  against  the  already  discredited  methods,  from  out  of  the  elements  of 
which,  duly  sifted  and  selected,  he  created  the  eclectic  system,  founded  upon 
anatomy  and  observation.  His  encyclopaedic  spirit,  the  success  of  his  teaching, 
the  excellent  results  of  his  scientiiic  journeys,  the  diversity  and  the  variety 
of  his  writings,  caused  him  to  be  looked  upon  as  nothing  short  of  an  oracle 
when,  upon  coming   to   Rome,  he    became    the    physician  of   the  Emperor 
Marcus  Aurelius.     The  sympathies  of  that  monarch  for  the  Christians  were 
undoubtedly  shared  by  Galen,  who  was  as  well  versed  in  the  Bible  as  in  the 
books  of  Plato.     He  was  an  anatomist  in  his  early  career,  but  he  specially 
distinguished   himself  afterwards  as  a  physiologist  and   psychologist.     ]\'o 
doctor,  before  him,  had  formed  any  conception  as  to  the   extent  of  I)i\  ine 
action  upon  the  least  important  of  human  affairs :  he  defined  and  compre- 
hended the  part  of  the  soul  beneath  its  corpoi-al  covering,  but  without  pro- 
nomicing  as  to  the  question  of  its  immortality.     This  ingenious  definition 
of  the  TTi/cB^aa,  the  part  which  he  assigns   it   in  the  sensorial   functions,  the 
difference  which  he  distinctly  asserts  between  the  nerves  of  feeling  and  those 
of  motion,  and  his  division  of  the  f(.rces  of  the  body  into  three  kinds— vital, 
animal,  and  natural— are  so  many  touches  of  genius,  \^hich,  though  but  mere 
glimmers  of  truth  at  first,  afterwards  shone  out  as  bright  lights  and  resplen- 
dent truths.     According  to  Galen,  (lie  health  of  the  body  depended  ujion  an 
equal  and  unifonn  mixture  of  s(,lids  and  liquids,  and  its  illness  from  their 
disproportion  and  inequality.    Consequently,  a  clever  physician  should  ah\ays 
foresee  illness,  by  judging  as  to  its  immediate  or  remote  causes,  its  predis- 
posing or  accidental  causes.     Galen  was  in  advance  of  his  time  ;  his  ideas  as 


,36  MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


to  inflammations,  loss  of  blood,  intermittent  fevers  ;  his  system  of  antipathies 
and  sympathies,  of  indications  and  counter-indications,  appertain  not  less  to 
physiology  than  to  pathology  and  therapeutics,  and  show  how  superior  he 
was  to  his  contemporaries  and  predecessors. 

Yet,  after  his  death,  the  doctrines  of  Hippocrates  again  obtained  preva- 
lence, though  the  materialist  tendencies  seem  to  be  directly  opposed  to  the 
spiritualism  of  the  Christian  faith.  The  latter,  however,  did  not  disown 
these  theories  in  medico-philosophic  science  ;  and  the  early  monks,  who  were 
physicians  of  the  body  as  well  as  of  the  mind,  began  to  transcribe  the  aphorisms 
of  Hippocrates,  the  principal  treatises  of  Galen,  and  the  vast  repertory  of  a 
Greek  physician,  Coelius  Aurelianus,  who  had  taken  up  and  commentated  all 
the  books  of  the  methodists.  In  these  times  of  trouble  and  uncertainty,  pro- 
fessional teaching'  had  no  other  sources  of  knowledge.  The  cities  of  Athens, 
Rome,  and  Alexandria  still  had  schools  of  philosophy  which  attracted  a 
motley  crowd  of  professors  and  students,  and  any  one  was  admitted,  whether 
Greek  or  Arab,  Gaul  or  Roman,  Christian  or  Jew  ;  for  the  only  restriction 
upon  complete  freedom  of  instruction  was  that  the  laws  of  the  state  and  the 
prevailing  religion  should  not  be  attacked  by  the  teachers  or  their  pupils. 
To  this  may  be  traced  in  the  philosophy  of  that  day,  as  it  was  called,  a 
strange  amalgamation  of  Eastern  reveries  and  scriptural  traditions,  of  pagan 
superstitions  and  Christian  legends.  The  most  intelligent  men  of  that  time 
believed  that  "famine,  death,  foul  air,  and  ej)idemics  are  caused  bj'  evil  spirits, 
who,  enveloped  in  a  cloud,  flit  through  the  loAver  regions  of  the  atmosj)here, 
to  which  they  are  attracted  by  the  blood  and  the  incense  offered  up  to  the 
false  divinities.  But  for  the  odour  of  the  sacrifices,  these  spirits  would  not 
exist.  It  is  to  them  alone  that  are  due  the  wonderful  cures  attributed  to 
^sculapius"  (Fig.  96). 

When  these  ideas  were  held  by  the  most  talented  men  of  the  time,  it  is 
not  astonishing  that  the  common  herd  should  have  sought  relief  for  bodily 
ills  in  practices  of  magic  and  piety,  having  recourse  to  talismans,  and  placing 
implicit  confidence  in  certain  words,  formulaj,  figures,  and  cabalistic  signs,  the 
effect  of  which  was,  as  they  believed,  to  exorcise  the  evil  spirits  and  obtain 
the  assistance  of  the  good  spirits. 

As  the  temples  of  ^sculapius,  Hygeia,  and  Serapis  were  closed — and 
these  divinities  were  altogether  neglected  by  the  end  of  the  fourth  centurj-— 
Christianity  opened  its  churches  and  its  monasteries  to  the  sick,  who  received 


MEDICAL   SCIEXCES. 


'37 


there  gratuitously  the  best  attention  that  charity,  still  very  devoid  of  science, 
but  animated  b}'  the  precepts  of  the  gospel,  could  offer  to  the  indigent.  The 
wants  both  of  the  body  and  the  soul  were  ministered  to.  The  first  leper- 
houses,  in  which  were  treated  not  only  lejjrosy,  but  the  other  skin  diseases 
which  were  so  frequent  at  that  day,  were  erected  close  to  the  church.  The 
hydropathic  treatment,  which  was  in  accordance  with  the  Christian  as  it  had 
been  with  the  Hebrew  faith,  became  general  under  the  combined  infiucnco  of 
religious  symbolism  and  hygienic  jirinciples.  Many  mineral  sources  and 
fountains  which,  though  they  had  lost  the  patronage  of  the  local  divinities, 
were  not  the  le.ss  crowded  at  fixed  ejjochs,  were  placed  beneath  the  tutelary 


Fig.  96. — Celtic  Monument  discoTered  at  Paris,  beneath  the  Choir  of  Notre-Dame,  in  1711. 
(According  to  several  archaeologists,  the  Jus-rcfe/ represents  the  Gallic  .3Jsculapiii3.) 


protection  of  various  saints,  to  whom    popular  opinion  attributed  a  special 
action  in  the  cure  of  diseases. 

In  the  beginning  of  the  fifth  century  the  practice  of  medicine,  like  that 
of  8urgerj%  which  was  not  yet  a  distinct  branch,  continued  to  be  free,  without 
any  authorisation  being  required.  There  were  even  women  who,  like  the 
Druidesses  of  the  Gauls,  treated  the  sick.  Charmern,  unconscious,  no  doubt, 
of  the  occult  forces  which  they  set  at  work,  proceeded  by  means  of  magnetism 
to  cure,  or  at  all  events  to  relieve,  neuralgic  pains  ;  country  bone-setters  were 
very  expert  in  remedying  fractures  and  di.slocations  of  the  limbs ;  and  nume- 
rous oculists,  impostors  of  the  worst  kind,  who  had  learnt  ■\\hile  serving  in  the 
army  what  little  they  knew  about  ocular  diseases,  made  large  sums  of  money 


'3* 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


by  scouring  the  country  with  their  lotions  and  quintessences.  But  at  the 
bottom  of  all  this  popular  medicine  lurked  the  most  outrageous  empiricism. 
Yet  the  authorities  of  the  large  towns  engaged  municipal  doctors,  who,  to 
judge  by  the  inscriptions  on  their  tombs,  were  not  devoid  of  ability,  and 
rendered  considerable  service.  The  public  teaching  of  medicine  followed  the 
fortunes  of  the  Roman  empire,  and  migrated  from  Rome  to  Byzantium  in 
the  reign  of  Constantine.  Yet  the  barbarians,  in  their  repeated  invasions, 
did  not  destroy  the  schools  at  Treves,  Aries,  Bordeaux,  and  Marseilles. 
Alexandria  and  Athens  more  especially  continued  to  be  luminous  centres  of 
intellectual  labour,  though  Gfreek  medicine,  which  alone  was  taught  there. 


^ — ^fl  rfiicogiic  eft  ung  ojifcau  cgipii'entic  tome  oitpapic  Ic! 
It  JIODld(opo2DcpIu6(jtot(C[eeciu[treoo|7rentt6rGcelIe 
^ — Am  [t  uo  ucii-  q  oe  cljatogiice  uioztcu  CHqnc0  lc6  tfaeo  oc 
fo  mx  ouDee  tiuictcG  c(  mcguc  (ce  oeuf o  o^fi  fecpcQcc  Ce  purge 

Fig.  97. — The  Stork  its  own  Doctor,  as  testified  to  by  Papias. — Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving 
in  the  "Dyalogue  des  Creatures"  (Gouda,  Gerart  Leeu,  1482,  in  folio).— In  the  Library  of 
M.  Amhroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


had  embraced  theories  derived  both  from  dogmatism  and  empiricism,  which 
continued  to  prevail  throughout  the  Middle  Ages. 

Oribasius  of  Pergamus,  physician  to  the  Emperor  Julian  the  Apostate, 
was,  at  the  close  of  the  fourth  centurj^  one  of  the  last  representatives  of 
pagan  science:  his  writings,  in  which  he  had  summarised  the  labours  of 
many  Greek  physicians,  were  adopted  by  the  sect  of  Nestorians,  who  cultivated 
more  particularly  philosophy  and  medicine.  The  Nestorian  school  of  Edessa 
soon  eclipsed  the  school  of  Alexandria,  and  shared  the  renown  attaching  to  the 
Athens  school ;  but  as  at  Edessa  the  propagation  of  Nestorianism  was  mixed 
up  with  scientific  teaching,  the  school  suffered  from  the  persecution  which 
the  Eastern  emperors,  Theodosius  II.  and  Leo  the  Isaurian,  waged  against  the 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


'39 


heresy  of  Nestorius.  The  professors  whose  orthodoxy  was  not  in  conformity 
with  that  of  the  Greek  Church  were  deprived  of  their  salaries  by  a  decree  of 
Justinian^  who  at  the  same  time  wrought  the  final  ruin  of  the  Athens  school. 

The  chairs  of  philosophy  and  medicine  were  not,  however,  altogether 
untenanted  in  the  East,  for  the  Arab  schools  were  still  in  existence,  though 
their  teaching  did  not  go  bej'ond  a  few  books  of  Pliny  the  Elder,  of  Dioscorides, 
of  Aristotle,  and  of  Galen,  very  imperfectly  translated  from  Greek  or  Latin 


Fig.  U8. — Physician,  from  the  "  Dause  Macabre,''  Guyot  Marchant  edition,  1490. 


mto  Syriac,  and  then  retranslated  into  Arabic  with  a  multiplicity  of  errors 
(Fig.  97).  The  school  of  Alexandria  had  ceased  to  be  more  than  a  shadow  of 
her  former  self,  the  lessons  of  the  masters  of  science  were  forgotten,  and  all 
that  she  possessed  was  a  few  rhetoricians,  who,  instead  of  confining  themselves 
to  a  careful  observation  of  causes  and  effects,  commentated  apocryjjhal  and 
ridiculous  books,  and  applied  themselves  to  the  discover}'  of  useless  or  insen- 
sate solutions.      Thus,  for  instance,  they  discussed  why  tlie  hand  has  five 


i^o  MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


fino'ers  instead  of  six  ;  why  such  and  such  an  intestine  is  of  one  shape  more 
than  of  another ;  why  the  human  head  is  round,  &c.  In  the  meanwhile  the 
monks  of  Mount  Lebanon  and  the  ascetics  of  Mount  Atlas,  in  obedience  to 
the  rules  of  their  order,  worked  incessantly  at  the  translation  and  copying 
— committing  many  blunders,  unfortunately — of  the  early  texts  relating  to 
the  theory  of  medicine,  in  order  that  the  information  possessed  by  the  ancients 
might  not  be  lost  to  the  Christian  world. 

Amidst  all  these  obscurities  of  science,  a  few  illustrious  savants  formed 
bright  exceptions.  Thus  Aetius,  of  Amida  in  Mesopotamia,  was  to  the  fifth 
what  Alexander  of  Tralles  was  to  the  middle  of  the  sixth  century.  The 
former,  a  Greek  jDhj^sician,  collected,  imder  the  title  of  "  Tetrabiblos,"  the 
observations  and  doctrines  of  his  predecessors,  completing  and  elucidating 
them  with  great  judgment.  For  instance,  his  work  contains  a  very  plausible 
theory  upon  fever,  a  detailed  description  of  the  principal  diseases  of  the  eye, 
and  a  series  of  very  precise  descriptions  of  the  functional  disorders  caused  in 
the  organism  by  various  morbid  complaints.  His  therapeutics  in  cases  of 
acute  disease  are  based  upon  the  principles  of  Hippocrates,  and  prove  that  he 
possessed  real  learning,  enriched  by  experience  and  refined  by  excellent  logic. 
Amongst  other  things,  Aetius  advocates  a  regular  diet  and  care  in  the  selec- 
tion of  aliments  ;  he  points  out  the  good  effects  of  fresh  air  and  cold  water  in 
cases  of  angina  and  in  pulmonary  complaints.  "  May  the  God  of  Abraham 
and  of  Jacob,"  he  exclaimed  when  prejjaring  one  of  his  remedies,  "  give  to 
this  medicine  the  virtues  which  I  believe  it  to  possess !  "   (Fig.  98.) 

After  Aetius  comes  Alexander  of  Tralles,  whose  medical  reputation 
was  very  great  in  the  sixth  century.  No  Greek  doctor  since  the  days  of 
Hippocrates  had  equalled  him  with  regard  to  practical  science,  professional 
sagacity,  and  literary  merit.  He  had  made  himself  acquainted  with  aU  the 
facts  which  had  been  observed  and  collated  before  his  time ;  but  he  did  not 
allow  himself  to  become  the  slave  of  any  scientific  authority,  or  to  be  seduced 
by  any  doctrine,  recognising  no  other  guide  than  his  own  experience.  He 
possessed  to  a  supreme  degree  the  art  of  diagnosis,  and  he  laid  down  as  a 
principle  that  no  decision  should  be  arrived  at,  as  to  the  treatment  of  a  case, 
until  the  specific  and  individual  causes  of  the  disease  have  been  carefully 
sought  out  and  considered.  His  views  upon  melancholia  and  gout,  his  dislike 
of  violent  aperients  and  the  abuse  of  opiimi,  his  preference  for  laxatives  in 
cases  of  dysentery  and  for  emetics  in  cases  of  intermittent  fever,  testify  both 


MEDIC  A  r.   SCIEXCES. 


,42  MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


to  the  independence  and  accuracy  of  his  observations,  and  show  that  he  knew 
how  to  apply  with  advantage  the  most  conflicting  theories.  He  was  the  first 
to  resort  to  bleeding  from  the  jugular  vein,  and  to  use  iron  filings  in  certain 
affections  of  the  blood. 

In  the  seventh  century  the  Jewish  doctors  endeavoured  to  possess  them- 
selves of  the  teaching  of  medicine  in  the  East,  forming  at  Damascus  and 
Constantinople  scientific  assemblies,  in  which  all  real  learning  was  lost  in  the 
obscurities  of  cabalism.  The  East,  always  a  land  of  illusions  and  fancies,  was 
only  too  accessible  to  the  superstitious  ideas  implied  in  the  magical  and 
supernatural  treatment  of  disease.  This  mixture  of  error  and  truth  is 
nowhere  more  noticeable  than  in  the  Koran,  a  compilation  which  is  as  much 
scientific  as  it  is  religious,  and  to  which  doctors  from  the  schools  of  Alex- 
andria and  Dschoudisapour  (the  town  founded  by  Sapor  II.)  must  have  con- 
tributed in  the  name  of  Mahomet,  for  this  code  of  Islamism  contains,  with 
regard  to  physiology  and  hygiene,  some  very  remarkable  views  and  excellent 
principles  summarised  in  the  shape  of  aphorisms  which  often  remind  one  of 
the  language  of  Hippocrates.  It  is  worth  while  mentioning  here  that,  long 
before  Mahomet's  time,  the  Arab  doctors,  who  were  also  poets,  legists,  and 
philosophers,  had  their  share  in  the  sacerdotal  influences  which  contributed  to 
the  civilisation  of  the  Eastern  races.  Thus,  when  the  conquests  of  Mahomet 
had  been  consolidated  with  the  sword,  the  native  and  foreign  doctors  residing 
at  Irak  found  greater  security  and  protection  from  the  Mussulmans  at  Bagdad 
and  Bassora  than  from  the  Emperors  at  Byzantium. 

Paul  of  ^gineta  was,  in  the  seventh  centurj',  the  last  personage  of  note 
belonging  to  the  expii'ing  school  of  Alexandria.  This  Greek  doctor,  whose 
pathology  was  based  upon  the  principles  of  Galen,  Aetius,  and  Oribasius,  also 
had  a  system  of  his  own  for  the  treatment  of  different  diseases,  such  as 
ophthalmia,  gout,  and  leprosy,  which  latter  was  spreading  with  frightful 
rapidity.  He  inclined  more  towards  methodism  and  eclecticism  than  towards 
empiricism.  One  of  his  contemporaries,  named  Ahrun,  who  was  not  probably 
a  student  of  the  Alexandria  school,  though  he  afterwards  practised  medicine 
in  that  city,  where  he  was  a  Christian  priest,  published  a  judicious  treatise 
upon  various  epidemics,  such  as  scurvy  and  small-pox,  which  latter  disease 
had  just  made  its  appearance  and  was  spreading  rapidly,  three  centuries 
before  the  Arab  doctor,  Rhazes,  gave  a  more  detailed  description  of  them. 

The  celebrated  schools  which  had  been  founded  at  Bagdad,  the  new  capital 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES.  143 


of  the  Caliphs  of  the  East,  and  at  Cordova  (Fig.  99),  the  new  capital  of  the 
Caliphs  of  Spain,  were  simultaneously  illustrated,  at  long  intervals,  by  Mesue 
the  elder,  John  Damascenus  or  Serapion,  Leo  the  Philosopher,  Rhazes,  and 
All,  sumamed  the  Magician,  the  last  mentioned  of  whom  apparently  embodied 
all  the  medical  science  of  the  Arabs,  which  reached  its  apogee  in  the  tenth 
century  by  appropriating  to  the  climate  and  to  the  customs  of  the  country 
the  principles  of  Galen,  and  basing  his  system  upon  a  mass  of  observations 
which  he  continued  up  to  the  age  of  a  hundred.  Greek  medicine  had  under- 
gone a  complete  metamorphosis  through  its  gradual  fusion  with  that  of  the 
Arabs,  just  as  pathological  questions  varied  va  their  object  and  character 
imder  the  influence  of  the  new  habits  and  requirements  of  modem  civilisa- 
tion. 

In  the  West  medical  science  was  still  very  backward,  though  it  had  not 
to  contend,  as  in  the  East,  with  a  religious  fanaticism  which  forbade  all 
kinds  of  drawings,  even  those  necessary  to  a  scientific  description  of  the 
diseases  of  the  human  bodj',  and  which  punished  as  a  crime  the  dissection  of 
a  corpse.  The  reason  was  that  it  had  no  protectors  since  the  disappearance 
of  the  last  of  the  Goths  in  the  eighth  century,  and  it  was  scarcely  taught  at 
all  in  the  schools  of  Southern  Gaul.  The  monastic  orders  had  monopolized 
the  practice  of  medicine,  and,  as  a  natural  consequence  of  the  sacred  mission 
intrusted  to  them  by  their  founder,  they  attempted  to  combine  remedies  for 
the  body  with  remedies  for  the  mind.  Prayer,  holy  water,  the  touching  of 
reKcs,  and  pilgrimages  to  holy  places  were  the  general  accessories  of  monkish 
therapeutics,  which  relied  upon  Providence  for  the  cure  of  the  sick,  upon 
whom,  however,  everj'  care  and  attention  was  lavished.  The  monks  also 
possessed  a  number  of  pharmaceutical  receipts  which  were  in  daily  use, 
though  they  were  derived  rather  from  tradition  than  from  science  ;  thej-  were 
likewise  acquainted  with  the  medicinal  properties  of  herbs,  which  they  used 
freely  for  woimds  and  sores. 

It  was  not  till  the  close  of  the  eighth  century  that  there  was  a  regular 
;ourse  of  medical  instruction,  and  it  was  organized  at  Monte  Casino  and 
Salerno,  in  the  kingdom  of  ^Naples ;  and  the  principles  of  the  teaching 
imparted  there  were  drawn  up  in  the  shape  of  aphorisms,  which  remained 
known  long  after  the  schools  themselves  had  disappeared.  At  this  epoch 
naany  ecclesiastics — Italian,  French,  Belgian,  and  German — commissioned  by 
;he  Holy  See  as  Apostolic  Legates,  went  to  England,  Scotland,  and  Ireland, 


144 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


and  fomidcd  scliools  there,  wliicli  in  a  sliort  time  contributed  to  the  spread 
of  science  in  France,  Belgium,  and  Germany.  (See  Chapter  I.,  UniversUies) 
Medicine  continued,  as  before,  to  be  one  of  the  branches  of  philosophy. 

When  the  mimicipal  regime  arose  upon  the  ruins  of  the  empire  of 
Charlemagne,  when  the  spirit  of  independence  and  isolation  gave  laymen  a 
share  with  ecclesiastics  in  civil  functions,  a  struggle  of  interest  and  vanity 
commenced  between  these  two  distinct  classes,  which  composed  society  at 
that  time.     The  monks  soon  saw  that  if  they  were  to  retain  their  monopoly 


Vig.  100.— Cure  through  the  Intercession  of  a  Healing  Saint.— Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving 
attributed  to  Holbein,  in  the  German  Translation  of  the  "  Consolation  of  Philosophy,"  by 
Boethius,  Augsburg  Edition,  1537,  in  folio. 


in  medicine,  threatened  by  the  laymen,  they  must  extend  their  knowledge 
both  of  medicine  and  of  surgery ;  and  the  consequence  was  that  as 
physicians  they  made  great  progress.  The  monastic  rules  laid  down  the 
study  of  the  "  De  He  Medica,"  a  treatise  by  Celsus,  who  was  stjded  the 
Latin  Hippocrates.  Moreover,  numbers  of  monks  and  priests  left  their 
cloisters  and  dioceses  to  wander  through  the  land,  devoting  themselves  to  the 
relief  of  suffering  hmnanity.  Of  these  were  Thieddeg,  doctor  to  Boleslos, 
King  of  Poland  ;  Hugh,  Abbot  of  St.  Denis ;    and  others.     The  illustrious 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES.  ,45 


Gerbert  d'Auvergne,  who  became  pope  under  the  title  of  Sylvester  II.,  had 
in  his  early  life  professed  philosophy  and  practised  medicine. 

It  is  no  doubt  true  that  the  clerks  who  had  taken  monastic  vows,  or  who 
had  been  ordained  priests,  abstained,  as  a  rule,  from  practising  suro-erv  ;  but 
they  were  often  present  at  the  serious  operations  effected  by  their  lay 
assistants.  In  such  cases  they  confined  themselves  to  the  part  of  consulting 
surgeons;  but  though  they  abstained  from  dipping  their  hands  in  blood,  they 
performed  in  certain  urgent  cases  such  simple  operations  as  incisions  and 
blood-lettings ;  they  treated  dislocations  and  fractures  of  limbs,  and  dressed 
the  wounds  inflicted  in  battle.  Leper  hospitals  had  long  since  been  esta- 
blished all  over  Europe.  There  was  an  almshouse  open  in  every  monastery,  in 
every  large  church  where  canons  li\'ed  in  common  under  the  conventual 
regime.  There  is  reason  for  believing  that  several  monasteries  in  the  diocese 
of  Metz,  and  especially  those  of  Padcrboni  and  Corbie,  wliich  were  famous 
for  the  philosophical  and  medical  teaching  imparted  there  to  students  from 
all  lands,  furnished  their  pupils  with  the  means  of  putting  their  theory  into 
practice  in  hospitals  attached  to  the  religious  establishment.  Here  ^^•ere 
trained  the  physicians  and  surgeons  who  travelled  all  over  Europe  without 
iiscarding  their  monastic  attire,  to  fulfil  their  mission  of  charity  by 
practising  medicine  and  performing  ordinary  operations  of  surgery.  It  was 
:rom  conventual  hospitals,  too,  that  were  recruited  the  men  and  \\-(jmen  who 
levoted  themselves  entirely  to  tending  the  sick.  There  were  also  a  number 
)f  matrons  and  elderly  women  who  belonged  to  a  sort  of  corporation,  which 
ras   speciaUy   employed    upon    obstetric    medicine,    at    that   time   forbidden 


0  men. 


The  renown  of  the  medical  schools  of  Monte  Casino  and  .Salerno  continued 
0  increase.  The  Emperor  Henry  II.  repaired  to  tlio  monastery  of  Monte 
^asino  to  be  treated  for  stone.  Most  of  the  sick  who  came  three  sought 
aerely  to  touch  the  relics  of  St.  Matthew,  the  patron  saint  of  the  conve"it, 
nd  those  of  other  healing  saints  (Fig.  100)  ;  but  they  found  there,  to  second 
be  intercessions  of  these  saints,  the  material  attentions  of  a  religious 
ommunity  which  had  made  a  serious  study  of  medicine,  and  which  possessed 
hygienic  code  in  accordance  with  the  teaching  of  experience  and  of  common 
inse.  The  touching  of  relics  was,  nevertheless,  looked  ui^on  at  this  period 
3  one  of  the  most  effective  means  of  cure,  and  it  is  not  to  be  wondered 
t  that  the  Kings  of  England  and  of  France,  who  had  been  anointed  with  llie 


u 


146 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


holy  oil  at  their  cousecratiou,  should  have  believed  that  they  had  the  power 
of  healing,  by  the  imposition  of  hands,  various  maladies,  such  as  goitre, 
king's  evil,  white  tumours,  &c. 

The  empirical  method,  which  was  current  in  the  West  during  the 
eleventh  century,  was  not  the  same  as  the  philosophical  medical  treatment 
taught  in  the  celebrated  schools  of  the  East,  but  in  the  practice  of  which 
there  were  many  singular  contradictions.  The  Arabic  mode  of  treatment 
was,  so  to  speak,  speculative.  Yet  the  illustrious  Avicenua  (born  at  Chiraz, 
in    Persia,    about    980),  whom  his  contemporaries  surnamed   the  Frincc  of 


^ 


*  ^    1^    4t    -4?    <ji 

♦  *tt     4f    4.     4.     ^     ^,     ^^,     ^      ^|,     ^ 
t      +      ^     4,      ^f     H$.      ^i      4,      ^     _      ^ 


tit   ,^   4    ^  Jtr-,i4j;  4t 
*    tit    ^    $t  " 

rt*        A       -tjv 
4-        -1+         1         1i 


Fig.  101.— A  Leper  House.— Miniature  from  the  "Miioir  Hibtorical"   of  Vincent  de  Beuu'iis 
Munuscript  of  the  Thirteenth  Centurj'.— In  the  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


Doctors,  was  educated  in  the  school  of  Bagdad ;  and  his  immense  reputation, 
which  won  him  access  to  the  courts  of  several  Asiatic  sovereigns,  is  a  proof 
of  the  talent  with  which  he  practised  his  art.  Amongst  the  numerous 
Avorks  in  Arabic  which  he  left  behind  him,  that  entitled  the  "  Canon,"  a 
medical  encyclopLX-dia,  which  testifies  to  the  erudition  and  sagacity  of  the 
author,  was  translated  into  Latin,  and  served  as  a  basis  of  teaching  for  six 
or  seven  centuries.  The  followers  of  Avicenna  spread  the  doctrine  of  their 
master  with  great  success,  amongst  them  being  Haruii  the  Jew,  who  wa.- 
one  of  the  first  interpreters  of  the  "  Canon  "  in  Europe  ;  Mesne  the  younger. 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES.  147 


whose  treatise  ou  the  Materia  Medica,  clisencumbered  of  the  subtleties  of  the 
Arab  school,  contains  ingenious  deductions  dra'wn  from  the  external  aspect  of 
each  plant ;  Ishak  ben  Soliman,  who  collected  some  very  sensible  observations 
upon  dietetics ;  and  Serapion  the  younger,  a  Greek  doctor,  whose  writings 
embodied  some  entirely  novel  suggestions  as  to  the  use  of  medicaments. 
Moreover,  the  Arabic  sj'stem  of  medicine,  in  passing  from  the  schools  of 
the  East  to  the  school  of  Cordova,  underwent  many  changes.  Thus  the 
Spaniard,  Albucasis,  who  was  at  once  an  anatomist  and  physicdogist,  did 
not  implicitly  accept  the  often  contradictory  authority  of  Galen  and 
Avicenna.  He  laid  down  as  a  principle  that  medicine  and  surgery  should 
lend  each  other  mutual  assistance,  and  he  invented  surgical  instruments  of  a 
most  formidable  kind.  These  instruments  were  of  iron;  for,  in  niipositinn 
to  the  prejudices  of  the  age,  according  to  which  every  metal  had  sduic 
special  jjroperty  analogous  to  the  different  operations  in  surgery,  be  main- 
tained that  iron  only  ought  to  bo  emploved.  lie  therefore  attacked  llie 
disease  with  fire  and  iron,  resorting  to  cauterization  with  a  degree  of  bnld- 
ness  which  was  often  successful,  and  practising  the  difflcidt  operation  of 
bronchotomy,  or  incision  of  the  windpipe,  which  modern  science  again 
resorts  to  in  certain  cases  of  croup. 

The  numerous  hospitals  founded  during  the  eleventh  century  wci-e 
rendered  all  the  more  indispensable  on  account  of  the  Crusades ;  and  monks, 
hospitallers,  and  hermits  created  upon  the  loutes  leading  to  tlie  Holy  Land 
fresh  refugei*  for  pilgrims  in  distress.  The  Johannists  and  the  brotherhoods 
of  St.  Mary  and  St.  Lazarus  devoted  themselves  to  the  mission  of  charily 
in  the  East;  in  France  there  were  tlie  l)r(ithers  of  St.  Anion}-  and  of  the 
Iloly  Ghost;  and  throughout  the  civilised  world  llie  hercjic  chevaliers  of 
St.  John  of  Jerusalem,  or  the  Templars,  whose  ei}untless  establishments 
combined  the  triple  character  of  conventual  churcli,  almshouse,  and  fortress, 
and  who,  attired  in  a  dress  botji  military  and  monastic,  wore  a  mantle 
similar  to  that  seen  in  the  statues  of  vEsculapius,  as  a  sign  of  the  double 
mission,  beneficent  and  warlike,  which  they  had  sworn  to  fullil,  al  flic  risk 
of  their  lives,  in  the  hospitals  and  upon  the  field  of  battle. 

Each  of  these  religious  congregations  gave  itself  over,  either  by  its 
origin  or  by  the  character  of  its  rules,  to  the  treatment  of  certain  sprcial 
diseases.  The  Order  of  St.  Antony,  for  instance-,  treated  tlie  tcrrililc  Inllaiii- 
matioiis  of  IJic  bowels  and    tlir  dysentei-ies  know  n  iiniliT  )1ir  L;rn,iir    name   of 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


St  Antony's  fire ;  tlie  Johannists  and  the  brotliers  of  the  Order  of  the  Holy 
Ghost  devoted  themselves  to  the  cure  of  the  great  epidemics  of  pestilence 
so  frequent  at  this  period;  the  Lazarists  possessed  sovereign  remedies  against 
leprosy,  small-pox,  pustular  fever,  &c. ;  the  Templars  tended  more  parti- 
cularly the  pilgrims,  travellers,  and  soldiers  afflicted  with  ophthalmia,  scurvy, 
severe"  wounds,  and  dangerous  sores.  The  Hospitallers  were  assisted  by 
various  corporations  of  women,  and,  at  a  time  when  regular  doctors  were  so 


Fig.  102.-A  Ward  in  the  HGtel-Dieu,  Paris.-Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving  of  the  Sixteenth 
Century,  in  the  Frontispiece  of  a  Manuscript  Kegister,  entitled,  "Pardon,  Grace,  and  Privi- 
leges granted  by  the  Archbishop  Patriarch  of  Bourges  and  Primate  of  Aquitame,  to  the 
Benefactors  of  the  Eostel-Dieu,  Paris."-In  the  Burgundy  Library,  Brussels. 

scarce,  they  were  very  useful  as  substitutes.  Hildegarde,  Abbess  of  Euperts- 
berg,  who  was  more  than  eighty  years  of  age  at  her  death  (1180),  organized 
a  school  of  nurses  who  rendered  great  service  in  the  hospitals.  Abelard, 
in  his  letters  to  the  nuns  of  the  Paraclete  Convent,  urged  them  to  learn 
siirgery  for  the  benefit  of  the  poor.  In  most  of  the  great  religious  commu- 
nities there  were  public  rooms  for  bathing,  dressing  the  wounds  of,  bleedmg, 
and  cupping  the  Indigent  sick  (Fig.  102).  In  Italy  the  Bishop  of  Salerno 
and  the  Abbot  of  Pescara  devoted  themselves  to  the  material  relief  of  humau 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES.  149 

sufferino".     The  learned  have  often  sought  to  discover  whether  in  the  ]\Iiddle 

Ai-es  there  existed  such  a  thing  as  militarj^  surgery  properly  so  called.     It 

is  true  that  no  allusion  is  made  to  it  in  historj'  until  the  fourteenth  century, 

but  in  the  most  ancient  chronicles  mention   is    continually  being   made  of 

some  monk  or  clerk  as  accompanying  the   army  ;  and  it  may  be  assumed 

that  he  was  a  mire,  or  }jhi/>iici(ui,  or  barber,  according  to  the  terms  then  used, 

whose   duty   it  was    to    tend    the  wounded   and  care   for    the    sick.       It    is 

impossible,  in  fact,  to  suppose  any  warlike  expedition  taking  place  without 

some  one  more  or  less  skilled  in  surgery  forming  part  of  it ;  and  it  is  easy 

to   imderstand   that  the   first   military    surgeons   were    ecclesiastics,    as    the 

Church  had  a  virtual  monoijoh'  of  the  science  of  medicine.     In  course  of  time 

the  urban  and  municipal  associations,  which  had  obtained  from  the  feudal 

lord  their  communal   rights,  sought  to  free  themselves  from  the  vassalage 

imposed  by  the  Church.     This  was  how  the  barbers  were  promoted  to  the 

rank  of  subordinate  surgeons,  and  in  every  town  of  any  importance  a  certain 

number  of  men  were  paid  a  fixed  salary,  and  undertook,  in  return,  to  attend 

the  poor,  and  follow  to  the  wars  the  man  whom  the  commune  had  to  furnish 

at  the  bidding  of  the  lord  of  thfe  soil.     In  manv  foreign  countries,  such  as 

Holland,  Italy,  and  Gennany,  even  more  than  in  France,  the  populous  and 

wealthy  towns  engaged  in  the  public  service,  and  at  a  comparatively  small 

cost,  one  or  more   surgeons,  nearly  all  of  whom  had  been  educated  in  the 

monastic  schools,   and  who  were,   therefore,  well  fitted  for  what  were  then 

called  works   of   mercy.       Of   these  was   Hugh  of   Lucca,   who,   appointed 

physician  at  Parma,  received  but  a  lunij)  sum  of  six  hundred  livres  for  his 

services  as  long  as  he  lived.     This  was  the  origin  of  the  Siadfa  P/ii/.sikii-s  in 

Germany,  and  of  the  salaried  surgeons  and  physicians  in  France,  who,  after 

having  been  for  two  centuries  the   rivals  of  the  monks  in  medicine,  were 

at   last    enabled    to    practise  without    let    or    hindrance,  and    to    fonn    ci\il 

corporations,  to  which  the  Crown  granted  certain  privileges  and  statutes. 

From  the  reign  of  Alexis  I.  (1081)  the  Emperors  of  the  East  accorded 
their  protection  to  the  literary  and  scientific  studies  which  flourished  in  their 
empire  far  more  than  they  did  in  the  West.  Though  they  had  no  particular 
fondness  for  medical  sciences,  the  latter  were  held  in  high  esteem  at  Bagdad 
and  Constantinople  ;  but  the  pliilosophical  character  of  the  art  was  disfigured 
by  the  shameless  devices  of  astrology  and  quackery.  During  the  reign  of 
Manuel  Comnenus,  from  ll-l.'i  to  11«(),  Conrad  II.,  Empei'or  of  Germany, 


ISO 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


having  been  wounded  in  the  Crusade,  and  not  having  in  his  army  a  surgeon 
able  to  cure  him,  was  obliged  to  put  himself  under  the  care  of  the  Greek 
doctors  at  Byzantium,  and  he  doubtless  acted  xmder  the  advice  of  the 
Emperor  Manuel,  who  prided  himself  upon  his  knowledge  of  medicine  and 
surgery.  It  was  the  Emperor  Manuel  who  afterwards  dressed  with  his  own 
hands  the  wounds  of  Baldwin  II.,  King  of  Jerusalem  ;  and  he  was  noted  for 
his  adroitness  in  bleeding,  and  for  his  discovery  of  potions  and  ointments 
which  had  the  reputation  of  being  very  beneficial.  Unfortunately  the 
superstitious  ideas  of  his  time  made  him  the  blind  slave  of  astrology. 

At  about  the  same  period  the  schools  of  the  Iberian  peninsula  produced 


Fig.  103.— Seal  of  the  Faculty  of  Medicine, 
Paria  (Fourteenth  Century). 


Fig.  104.— Counter-Seal 
of  the  Faculty  of  Medicine,  Paris 
(Fourteenth  Century). 

From  the  Collection  of  Seals  in  the  National  Archives,  Paria. 


three  men  of  genius  :  Ebn-Boithar,  a  doctor  and  naturalist,  most  of  whose 
works  have  been  lost ;  Abcnzoar,  who,  ^vith  no  other  guide  than  observation 
and  method,  practised  medicine,  surgery,  and  pharmacy  with  the  greatest 
success,  and  whose  "  Taisyr,"  a  vast  comjjendium  of  contemporary  science, 
translated  into  Latin,  long  enjoyed  a  well-merited  reputation  ;  and,  lastly, 
the  famous  Averroes,  who,  at  Cordova,  publicly  taught  philosophy,  juris- 
prudence, and  medicine  with  such  boldness  and  independence  that  he  was 
obliged  to  fly  from  Spain  to  Morocco,  where,  notwithstanding  some  further 
proceedmgs,  he  was  able  to  compose  a  remarkable  commentary  upon  the 
writings  of  Aristotle  (1-317)      The  Jewish  and  Mahometan  schools  of  Cordova 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES.  '  151 

and  Granada  were  so  famous  in  the  regenerated  world  of  arts  and  sciences 
that  the  neighbouring  nations  also  created  schools  which  attempted  to  rival 
them.  Thus  as  early  as  the  twelfth  century  the  schools  of  medicine  at 
Montpellier  and  Paris  (Figs.  103  and  104)  acquired  a  certain  celebrity,  just 
as  in  Italy,  a  little  later,  the  schools  of  Bologna,  Modena,  Ferrara,  Milan, 
Naples,  Parma,  Padua,  and  Pavia  became  famous.  The  quickening  sap  of 
university  teachmg  began  to  flow  through  the  veins  of  every  European 
nation. 

The  Papal  bulls  ordering  the  establishment  of  the  Faculties  at  Montpellier, 
Salerno,  and  Paris  settled  the  discipline  to  be  observed  by  the  students  and 
the  hierarchy  amongst  the  masters  by  the  creation  of  new  degrees  and 
dignities.  But  though  to  study  medicine  or  surgery  in  the  Universities  of 
Italy  and  Sicily  it  was  still  necessary  to  be  a  clerk — that  is  to  say,  an  eccle- 
siastic and  tonsured — this  rule  soon  fell  into  disuse  at  the  .scho(jls  of  Mont- 
pellier and  Paris.  Nevertheless,  to  obtain  the  rank  of  Madcr  Phij'siiiiin  or 
Doctor  at  the  Faculty  of  Montpellier,  the  candidate  must  be  a  clerk,  and  must 
have  undergone  an  examination  before  masters  or  doctors  selected  from  the 
staff  of  the  college  by  the  Bishop  of  :Maguelonne  ;  to  obtain  the  degree  of 
Surgeon  a  similar  though  less  difficult  examination  was  required,  but  the 
candidate  need  not  be  a  clerk.  The  barbers,  who  did  not  quit  the  faculties  of 
medicine,  and  who  merely  practised  minor  surgery,  had  not  to  pass  any 
examination,  except  that  which  the  masters  of  their  corporation  made  them 
undergo  at  the  hands  of  members  of  their  profession. 

In  the  kingdom  of  Naples  any  one  desiring  to  practise  as  a  doctor  had  to 
undergo  five  years  of  medical  study  and  two  examinations  for  his  license  and 
doctorate  before  masters  of  the  school  of  Salerno,  and  then  to  spend  a  year 
upon  trial.  The  surgeon,  before  entering  upon  his  functions,  also  had  to 
follow  a  special  course  of  study  for  a  twelvemonth,  so  as  to  become  familiar 
"with  the  anatomy  of  the  human  body,  without  which  it  is  impossible  to 
undertake  an  operation  in  safety,  or  follow  up  the  cure  of  the  sick  person 
after  the  instrument  has  been  employed." 

For  some  time  the  medical  school  of  Bologna  was  the  first  in  the  world. 
It  owed  its  acknowledged  superiority  to  Jacopo  Bertinozzo,  to  Hugo  and 
Theodoric  of  Lucca,  and,  above  all,  to  William  Salicetfi,  boi-n  in  1200,  not 
less  skilful  as  a  surgeon  than  as  a  physician,  who  operated  both  in  the  camps, 
the  hospitals,  and  in  many  large  towns,  such  as  Bergamo,  Venice,  and  Pavia, 


J 52  2MEDICAL    SCIENCES. 


which  latter  city  employed  an  experienced  practitioner,  who  was  paid  out  of 
the  municipal  funds.      The  principal  objection  urged  against  Salicetti  was 
that  for  healing  sores  he  resorted  too  much  to  cauterization  and  the  knife, 
instead  of  applying  toxical  and  medicinal  remedies.     He  was,  however,  the 
teacher  of  Lanfranc,  who  always  respectfully  spoke  of  him  as  "my  master  of 
honoured  memory."     Compelled  to  quit  his  country  for  political  reasons,  this 
celebrated  Milanese  professor  fled  into  France,  and  was  invited  to  Paris  by 
his  compatriot,  Passavant,  Dean  of  the  Faculty,  and  by  Pitard,  surgeon-in- 
chief  to  King  Philippe  le  Bel.     After  performing  several  difficult  operations  of 
surgery,  which  won  him  great  renown,  he  opened  a  school,  which  was  very 
numerously  attended.     It  may  be  said  that  his  teaching  brought  about  a 
complete  reform  in  French  surgery,  and  his  two  works,  "  Chirurgia  Magna" 
and  "  Chirurgia  Parva,"  became  the  manual  of  practical  science ;  for,  before 
his  time,  this  branch  of  the  art,  in  the  hands  of  ignorant  barbers,  both  in 
France,    Spain,    and  Germany,   was    almost    crushed   beneath   the   yoke  of 
medical  omnipotence.     Thus  all  surgeons,  male  and  female  (for  many  women 
insisted  on  being  attended  by  their  own  sex  in  certain  cases),  were  compelled 
to  give  an  undertaking  that  they  would  limit  their  labours  to  hamUworh ;  that 
they  would  not  give   any  consultation  or   administer  any  internal   remedy 
without  the  advice  or  the  pennission  of  a  physician.     The  surgeon  was  free 
to  operate  as  he  pleased,  but  he  could  not  give  an  opinion  or  write  a  prescrip- 
tion.    Moreover,  in  very  grave  cases,  important  operations  were  not  left  to  the 
decision  of  the  patient,  or  even  to  that  of  the  practitioner,  however  eminent  he 
might  be.     The  permission  either  of  the  bishop  or  of  the  feudal  lord  was 
necessary,  and  the  operation  was  invariably  preceded  by  a  solemn  consultation 
in  presence  of  the  friends  and  relatives  of  the  patient.     These  exaggerated 
precautions  are  all  the  more  surprising,   for  while  the  civil  and  rehgious 
authorities  seemed  to  be  so  particular  with  regard  to  operations  performed  by 
eminent  surgeons,  they  scarcely  interfered  at  all  with  the  minor  operations 
performed  by  barbers  or  hospital  nurses.     Moreover,  the  leading  surgeons 
would  have  considered  it  beneath  their  dignity  to  perform  in  unimportant 
cases.     At  the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century  they  did  not   condescend  to 
operate  themselves  in  cases  of  puncture  for  dropsy,  of  stone,  of  hernia,  or  01 
cataract,  and  they  even  disregarded  the  study  of  internal  diseases  as  imworthy 
of  their  profession. 

The   genius  of   Lanfranc  was  instrumental   in  bringing  about  a  better 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


153 


state  of  things.  He  says,  in  one  of  his  books,  "  The  outside  public  believe 
it  impossible  for  a  man  to  be  proficient  both  in  medicine  and  surgery'.  But 
a  good  physician  must  know  something  of  surgery,  and  a  good  surgeon  cannot 
afford  to  be  ignorant  of  medicine ;  it  is,  therefore,  necessary  for  a  medical 
man  to  have  some  knowledge  of  both  these  sciences."     Under  the  influence  of 


Fig.  105.— Doctor  Death.— Jlijiiutmo  from  a.  "  J'.ook  of  Jloura  "  of  the  Sixteenth  Century.— In  the 
Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


these  sensible  ideas,  surgical  science  rose  in  the  Paris  Faculty  to  the  level  of  the 
highest  literary  teaching,  and  was  as  well  taught  as  in  the  best  medical  schools 
of  Italy  and  Spain,  to  which  French  parents  no  longer  thought  it  necessary  to 
send  their  children.  The  Faculty  of  Taris  was  considered  to  be  equal  to  all 
requirements,  and   it  was    only   a  few  5'oung  surgeons  who  came  for  some 

X 


154  MEDICAL   SCIEXCES. 

weeks  to  Bologna,  -svliere  the  great  anatomist  ]Mundinus  and  his  successor, 
Bertreccius,  practised  dissection  before  an  attentive  assemblage  of  practitioners 
from  all  parts  of  Europe  (Fig.  105). 

Another  set  of  professors  belonging  to  the  Jewish  race,  less  brilliant  and 
more  narrow  in  their  teaching  than  those  attached  to  the  schools  of  Paris  and 
Montpellier,  also  enjoyed  a  certain  celebrity  in  towns  where  the  fanaticism  of 
the  people  against  the  Jews  had  been  quelled  by  the  authorities.  From  the 
Carlovingian  times,  Metz,  Mayence,  Strasburg,  Frankfort,  Troyes,  and 
Avignon  had  maintained  chairs,  from  which  the  rabbis,  who  were  looked 
upon  by  the  Jews  not  merely  as  ministers  of  religion,  but  as  the  best  advisers 
on  earthly  matters  as  well,  taught,  after  the  glossology  of  cabalism  and  the 
Scriptures  as  commentated  by  the  Talmiidists,  the  Hebrew  language,  philo- 
sophy, moral  philosophy,  hygiene,  and  medicine. 

From  the  time  that  Lanfranc  founded  the  St.  Cosmo  College  at  Paris, 
surgeiy  disencumbered  itself  more  and  more  from  its  original  barbarism. 
In  1311  Philippe  le  Bel  enacted  that  all  surgeons  in  the  kingdom  should  pass 
an  examination  before  the  new  surgical  college,  the  members  of  which, 
honoured  with  the  confidence  of  the  King  and  his  ministers,  caused  great 
imibrage  to  the  Faculty  of  Medicine.  This  was  the  beginning  of  the  long 
struggle  between  the  long-robed  and  the  short-robed  doctors  (Fig.  106). 
The  faculty  would  not  confer  its  degree  of  Bachelor  upon  students  imtil 
they  swore  never  to  practise  surgery,  and  continued  to  exact  from  them 
the  oath  of  perpetual  celibacy.  The  faculty  also  obtained  from  Xing  John 
(1352)  a  decree  prohibiting -anj-  one  who  was  not  an  apothecary,  student,  or 
mendicant  monk  from  practising  medicine.  These  measures  were  taken  with 
a  view  of  protecting  the  honours  of  the  profession,  but  they  proved  far  less 
effectual  than  the  labours  of  Guy  de  Chaiiliac  (1363),  author  of  the  "  Grande 
Chinirgie,"  who,  in  his  double  capacity  of  physician  and  surgeon,  raised  the 
reputation  of  the  medical  body  to  a  very  high  pitch. 

Upon  the  other  hand,  the  afiiliation  of  Charles  Y.  to  the  brotherhood  of 
St.  Cosmo  increased  the  pride  of  the  sm-geons,  who  were  so  injudicious  as  to 
exhibit  towards  the  barbers  as  much  intolerance  and  contempt  as  the  physi- 
cians had  shown  towards  themselves.  The  master  barbers,  "hampered  in 
their  calling "  by  the  surgeons,  appealed  to  the  King,  who  received  their 
appeal  very  favourably,  and  exempted  them  from  doing  duty  as  watchmen, 
iipon  the  ground,  as  the  royal  decree  put  it,  that  "  the  barbers  being  nearly 


MEDICAL   SCIEXCES. 


"55 


all  of  them  iu  the  habit  of  practising  surgery,  great  inconvenience  might 
arise  if  they  were  absent  from  their  houses  ^^'hen  sent  for  during  the 
night." 

The  surgeons,  who  continued  to  encroach  upon  the  domain  of  the 
phj'sicians,  but  who  were  none  the  less  jealous  of  their  own  privileges, 
subjected  the  barbers  to  so  many  vexations  that  the  authijrities,  tired  of 
being  continually  ajipealed  to  in  order  to  settle  some  disjjute  between  the  two 
corporations,   formally  defined  the  respective  rights  of   both  parties.     The 


Fig.  106.— The  Physiciuu. — Lksigutd  aud  engraved  iu  tlie  Sixtefiitli  Century  by  J.  Auimaii. 

decree  of  October  .jrd,  1372,  empowered  the  barbers  "  to  apply  plasters,  oint- 
ments, and  other  ajipropriate  medicines  for  bruises,  apostemcs,  and  other  open 
woimds,  not  of  a  cliaracter  likely  to  cause  death,  because  physicians  are  men 
of  great  estate  and  very  expensive,  wIidui  the  poor  are  not  able  t(j  pay." 
From  this  period,  then,  there  wore  three  distinct-  classes  of  persons  exercising 
medicine  in  its  different  stages :  the  long-robed  practitioners,  tiiircH  or 
^%«art««,  rejjrescnting  the  r'aculty  of  Paris;  (liu  slioi't-robed  xnnjfoiix,  \\'\i^i 
formed  a  corporation  under  the  patronage  of  )St.  Cosmo  and  St.  iJamianus  ; 
and  the  barbers,  entitled  to  carry  a  sword,  who  formed  a  business  corporation, 


156  MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 

and,  to  use  the  technical  exj)ression  of  the  time,  filled  the  "  office  de  barberie, 
sans  conteste." 

This  rule  applied  to  all  France,  except  to  the  provinces  of  Burgundy  and 
Lorraine,  in  which  there  ivere  the  great  harlers  and  the  little  barbers.  The 
latter,  who  were  mere  adventurers,  travelled  on  foot,  with  their  small  wallet 
and  light  purse,  from  village  to  village,  to  sell  their  antidotes  and  drugs, 
while  the  great  barber,  sworn  surgeon,  called  upon  his  patients,  attired  in  a 
long  robe  trimmed  with  fur,  and  bestriding  a  hackney,  the  tinkling  of  whose 
bells  announced  his  arrival  a  long  way  off.  This  master  surgeon,  often 
accompanied  by  an  assistant  and  several  servants,  carried  in  his  case  five  or 
six  kinds  of  instruments ;  to  wit,  scissors,  nippers,  a  sort  of  probe  called 
eprouvettc,  razors,  lances,  and  needles.  He  also  had  five  sorts  of  ointment, 
which  were  at  that  time  looked  upon  as  indispensable :  the  basilicon,  which 
was  considered  a  maturative  remedy  ;  the  apostles'  ointment,  for  quickening 
the  vitality  of  bad  flesh  ;  the  wliite  ointment,  for  consolidating  the  flesh ;  the 
yellow  ointment,  for  stimulating  the  growth  of  proud  flesh ;  and  the  dialtcea 
ointment,  for  subduing  local  pain.  The  great  barbers  did  even  more  than  this, 
and  Guy  de  Chauliac  says,  "  I  never  went  out  on  my  visits  without  taking 
with  me  several  clysters  and  plain  remedies,  and  I  gathered  herbs  in  the 
fields,  so  as  to  treat  diseases  in  a  proper  manner,  winning  thereby  honour, 
profit,  and  many  friends." 

Guy  de  Chauliac,  who  M^as  appointed  physician  to  three  popes  at  Avignon, 
Clement  VI.,  Innocent  VI.,  and  Urban  V.,  was,  moreover,  very  particular  as 
to  the  conditions  under  which  a  surgeon  should  be  allowed  to  practise.  He 
insisted  that  a  surgeon  should  be  "  well  educated,  clever,  and  of  good  morality ; 
bold  when  he  saw  his  way  clear,  prudent  in  doubtful  cases,  kind  to  his 
patients,  gracious  towards  his  colleagues,  modest  in  giving  an  opinion,  chaste, 
sober,  pitiful,  and  merciful ;  not  greedy  of  gain,  but  receiving  a  modest 
remuneration,  according  to  his  labour,  the  means  of  the  patient,  the  result  of 
the  illness,  and  his  own  dignity." 

It  was  creditable  to  French  surgery  that  such  honourable  sentiments 
should  have  been  expressed  at  a  time  Avhen  in  neighbouring  countries,  and 
notably  m  England,  human  credulity  was  being  so  scandalously  imposed 
upon  by  the  most  ignorant  of  characters.  For  instance,  an  Eng-lish  surgeon 
called  Goddesden  had  two  sorts  of  prescriptions,  one  for  the  rich  and  another 
for  the  poor  ;  he  sold  at  a  high  price  to  the  barbers  a  so-caUed  panacea,  which 


MEDICAL   SCIEXCES. 


!57 


the  latter  sold  again  at  a  large  profit,  and  this  panacea  was  siniplj'  a  mixture 
of  frogs  pounded  up  in  a  mortar  ;  he  pompously  advertised  infallible  and  secret 
remedies,  in  which  he  placed  so  little  confidence  that  he  took  care  to  exact 
payment  for  them  beforehand  (Fig'.   107).      In  one  of  his  books  there  is  a 


Fig.  107.— laterior  of  a  Doctui's  House.  — F,ic-siiuilu  u<i  ii  Jliiiiaturc  tioin  the  '-Epit-tre  de  Othea," 
by  Christine  de  Pi.san.— Mami.script  of  thu  FiftoeiitU  CViiitury.-In  the  Bm-midy  Library, 
Brussels. 


short  chapter  upon  dmKjreeahlc  diseases,  as  he  terms  them,  wliicli  work  their 
own  cure,  and,  therefore,  bring  no  grist  to  the  doctor's  mill. 

■Several  great  epidemics,  the  teri'ible  effects  of  which  are  alluded  to  by 
Guy  de  Chauliac  and  his  contemporary  Petrarcli,  had  caused  great  consterna- 
tion throughout  Europe,  and  gave  ri.se  to  the  idea  of  establishing  a  medical 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


police  for  all  couutiies.  The  idea  was  a  liappy  one,  but,  carried  into  execu- 
tion under  the  joint  supervision  of  the  ecclesiastical,  the  municipal,  and  the 
Universitjr  authorities,  the  scheme  was  imbued  Avith  the  prejudices  of  that 
time.  Thus  lepers  continued  to  be  kept  in  a  state  of  isolation  as  in  the 
twelfth  century,  and  the  ceremonies  by  which  they  were  deprived  of  their 
rights  as  citizens  were  maintained.  The  well-known  black  plague,  one  of  the 
greatest  scourges  that  ever  devastated  the  world,  and  which  originated  in  the 
Asian  marshes  in  1348,  after  a  long  succession  of  earthquakes  and  heavy  rain, 
ravaged  Italy  and  France,  spreading  from  thence  to  Germany,  England, 
and  Holland.  The  country  districts  were  depopulated  and  converted  into 
deserts.     In  the  towns  this  plague  raged  with  such  intensity  that  Yenice  lost 


108. — Btmner  of  the  Apothecaries  of 
St.  Lo. — Symholic  Arms  of  the 
Corporation. 


Fifj.  109. — Banner  of  the  Apothecaries  of 
Caen. — Symbolic  Arms  of  the  Cor- 
poration. 


a  hundred,  and  Strasburg  fifty  thousand  inhabitants.  In  many  localities  nine- 
tenths  of  the  population  perished  in  a  few  months.  The  best  medical  advice 
was  powerless  against  an  atmospheric  poisoning,  the  effects  of  -which  often 
proved  fatal  in  the  space  of  an  hour,  and  the  municipal  authorities  thought  to 
arrest  it  by  large  fires  which  were  lighted  at  the  cross  roads  and  in  the  squares 
of  the  towns.  The  Church,  by  order  of  Clement  VI.,  pope  at  Avignon, 
endeavoured,  as  at  the  period  of  the  plague  which  ravaged  Italy  and  decimated 
the  popidation  of  Rome  in  1254,  when  Innocent  IV.  was  pope  (Fig.  110),  to 
inspire  the  people  with  courage,  bj^  means  of  processions,  sermons,  and  puhUc 
prayers.  The  Holy  See  granted  plenary  indulgence  to  all  those  who,  by  tend- 
ing the  sick,  exposed  themselves  to  almost  certain  death.     Few  medical  men 


MEDIC  A  r.   SCIENCES. 


159 


■\vprc  fouiul  to  fnce  tlio  danger,  and  the  priests  alone  ventured  to  appi'oach  the 
dying,  and  offered  them  the  last  consolations  of  religion. 

Public  sanitary  measures  do  not  date,  however,  from  this  period  of 
general  calamity,  but  from  a  somewhat  later  epoch,  when  the  outbreak  of 
various  local  epidemics  caused  great  apprehension  as  to  the  return  of  the 
black  plague.  The  closing  of  houses,  streets,  and  even  quarters  in  towns 
where  the  disease  had  raged,  the  drawing  of  a  sanitary  cordon  round  the 


Fig.  110.— Portrait  of  Innocent  IV.,  elected  Pope  in  124.3.— Fresco  r.-iinting  upon  Gold  Ground, 
in  the  Basilica  of  St.  Paul,  Rome. 


places  infected,  and,  what  was  still  more  important,  the  scientific  investiga- 
tion of  the  causes  of  the  disease,  the  cleansing  of  the  sewers  and  the  streets, 
the  purifying  of  the  drinking  water,  the  transfer  of  the  needy  sick  to  some 
place  outside  the  walls,  and  the  practice  of  burying  the  victims  of  epidemic 
in  quicklime,  testify  to  the  prudent  precautions  of  the  administration.  The 
paving  of  streets,  which  had  been  abandoned,  or  at.  all  events  much 
neglected,  since  the  fall  of  the  Roman  empire,  was  one  of  the  logical 
consequences  of  this  system  of  general  salubrity  (Fig-  HI).     At  this  period. 


1 60  MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 

too,  the  use  of  mineral  waters  again  becanio  general,  and  the  doctors 
recommended  to  the  sick,  and  especially  to  those  just  recovering  from  an 
ilhiess,  the  ancient  sources  of  ISTeris,  Vichy,  Plombieres,  Ais-la-Chapelle, 
&c.,  which  woidd  have  had  still  more  visitors  if  the  roads  had  been  better, 
and  a  residence  at  these  thermal  stations  more  secure.  Many  localities, 
fornierly  celebrated  for  the  cure  of  chronic  diseases,  became  places  of 
pilgrimage  ;  and  though  these  pilgrimages  retained  their  religious  character, 
they  were  approved  of  and  encouraged  by  the  doctors. 

It  is  mortifying  to  find  that  in  the  principal  towns  of  France,  Germany, 
and  Italy  the  authorities  made  no  effort  to  arrest  the  superstitious  ideas 
which  prevailed.  From  time  to  time  the  Jews,  the  lepers,  the  insane,  and 
the  imbecile  were  accused  of  poisoning  the  fountains,  the  wells,  the  rivers, 
and  even  the  air,  and  thej^  were  seized  and  cast  into  prison,  and  often  put 
to  death.  Sometimes,  it  is  true,  these  iniquitous  acts  were  attributable  to 
the  blind  fury  of  the  populace,  determined  to  take  what  they  believed  to  he 
justice  into  their  own  hands ;  but  in  some  cases  the  urban  administration 
took  part  in  the  massacre,  and  became  responsible  for  it,  as  when  the  council 
of  the  city  of  Metz  ordered  the  punishment  of  several  lepers,  "who  were 
executed  for  their  unworthiness."  Moreover,  in  times  of  epidemic,  the 
population  invariably  demanded  the  extermination  of  the  lepers  and  the 
Jews. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  rivalry  was  going  on  at  Paris  between  the  surgeons 
and  the  barbers.  The  former,  having  exhausted  in  vain  all  their  efforts  to 
put  down  the  pretensions  of  the  barbers,  addressed,  in  1390,  the  following 
petition  to  the  University : — "  We,  you^r  humble  scholars  and  disciples, 
appeal  to  your  venerable  authority,  to  the  masters  of  the  Faculty  of  Medi- 
cine "  (Fig.  112).  The  physicians,  appeased  by  this  indirect  act  of  submis- 
sion, promised  the  surgeons  to  lend  them  their  support  so  far  as  they 
remained  "true  scholars."  But  whether  because  the  doctors  of  the  faculty 
changed  their  minds,  or  because  the  Crown  interfered  in  the  interests  of  the 
public,  even  at  the  expense  of  a  privileged  body,  Charles  V.  did  not  take 
part  with  the  surgeons,  and  by  his  silence  confirmed  the  professional  inde- 
pendence of  the  master  barbers.  The  surgeons  thereupon  adopted  a  better 
and  more  dignified  way  of  asserting  their  superiority.  "Henceforth,"  they 
declared  in  their  new  statutes,  "  every  apprentice  shall  be  able  to  speak  and 
write  good  Latin;    moreover,   he  shall  be  of   comely  appearance  and   free 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


iU\ 


from  all  deformity:    no  master  shall  receive  an   apprentice  who  does  not 
bring  letters  of  recommendation  from  his  former  master,   and  the  deo-ree 


I    iig.  111.— iSliops  in  an  Apotherary'B  Street:   liarber,  Fuiritr,  and  Tailor.— Jlinialurc  iiuiii   llii 
I  "  Regime  des  Princes."— Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century.— Arsenal  Library,  Piiris. 


of   Bachelor,  without    previous    examination,    shall    cost    two    gcjlil    crowns, 


1 62  MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


instead  of  a  franc."  These  precautions  were  evidently  taken  in  order  that 
access  to  the  professorships  of  St.  Cosmo  might  be  limited  to  students  who, 
by  their  learning  and  application  to  work,  would  be  capable  of  sustaining 
the  aristocracy  of  the  surgical  body  against  the  invading  democracy  of  the 
barbers.  There  was,  moreover,  very  ample  room  for  choice,  as  the  College 
of  St.  Cosmo  comprised  only  ten  sworn  surgeons.  The  number  of  barbers, 
upon  the  other  hand,  steadily  increased,  and  from  forty,  in  the  middle  of  the 
fourteenth  century,  it  had  risen  to  sixty  at  the  close.  The  degree  of  esteem 
in  which  each  of  the  three  classes  of  medical  men  was  held  may  be  gathered 
from  the  characteristic  fact  that  when  the  Paris  Faculty  appointed  physi- 
cians, surgeons,  and  barbers  to  attend  the  plague-stricken,  it  allotted  a 
salary  of  two  hundred  pounds- Paris  to  the  first,  of  one  hundred  and  twenty 
to  the  second,  and  of  eighty  only  to  the  third. 

By  the  fifteenth  century  the  Arab  school  of  medicine  had  lost  ground,  and 
the  sound  doctrines  of  Hippocrates  resumed  their  sway,  owing  to  the  succes- 
sive checks  inflicted  upon  the  doctrines  of  Avicenna,  Averroes,  and  Galen, 
which  fell  into  disfavour.  These  latter  would  have  been  still  more  discredited 
if  to  the  father  of  medicine  had  not  been  attributed  the  authorship  of  a  mass 
of  works  which  he  never  wrote,  and  if  the  theosophical  ravings  of  judicial 
astrology  had  not  taken  the  place  of  observation  and  method.  The  illus- 
trious Marsilio  Ficino  of  Florence,  who  was  one  of  the  oracles  of  his  day, 
himself  retarded  the  progress  of  true  science  by  upholding  with  the  passionate 
ardour  of  a  Platonist  the  tenets  of  a  science  which  was  false  and  misleading. 

It  is  not  astonishing,  therefore,  that  medicine  should  have  been  subor- 
dinated to  the  occult  sciences,  especially  to  astrology.  These  imaginary 
sciences  opened  to  inquisitive  and  restless  minds  horizons  peopled  with  aU 
kinds  of  illusions  ;  with  them  dreams  occupied  the  place  of  facts,  and  each 
individual  was  supposed  to  hold  a  special  rank  in  the  universal  harmonic 
system.  The  destiny  of  a  country  or  a  city,  like  that  of  an  indi^'iduaI, 
was  dependent  upon  the  motion  of  such  and  such  a  planet.  An  epidemic 
was  caused  by  the  conjunction  of  different  stars,  and  as  the  inherent 
principle  of  every  illness  was  in  the  constellation  beneath  which  the  sufferer 
was  born,  the  doctor's  first  duty  was  to  seek  out  the  constellation,  so  as  to 
get  a  basis  for  his  prognosis.  The  constellation  once  discovered,  the  most 
remarkable  conjectures  were  drawn  from  its  position  and  sidereal  influences. 
Hooping-cough— observed  for  the  first  time  as  an  epidemic  in  1414 — and  plica, 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


'^'3 


or  scurvy  of  tlie  head,  which  extended  from  Poland  into  Bohemia  and  Austria, 
puzzled  the  sagacity  of  the  astrologers,  who  sought  for  the  explanation  of 
terrestrial  phenomena  in  signs  from  above. 

While  in  medicine  astrological  imposture  was  invading  the  domain  of 
practical  observation,  Italian  surgerj',  compromised  by  a  mass  of  charlatans, 
was  not  nearly  so  far  advanced  as  French  surgery  (Fig.  113).    Germany,  not 


Fig.  U2. — Beadles  of  the  Three  Faculties  of  Theology,  Jurisprudence,  and  Medicine  at  the 
University  of  Pont-a-Mous9on. — From  the  "Funeral  of  Charles  III.,  Duke  of  Lorraine" 
(1608),  Copper  Plate  engraved  hy  F.  Brentel,  after  Claude  de  la  Ruelle.~In  the  Library  of 
M.  Amhroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


less  backward  in  medical  science,  manifested  an  equal  degree  of  contempt  for 
bath-keepers,  shepherds,  and  barbers,  all  of  whom  were  f)revented  from  form- 
ing corporations,  or  marrying  into  any  family  not  engaged  in  their  trade. 
Surgical  art  was  at  an  even  lower  ebb  in  Gennany  than  it  was  in  Itah-,  as  a 
proof  of  which  it  may  be  mentioned  that  Matthias  Corvinus,  King  of  Hungary, 
m  order  to  be  cured  of  an  old  wound,  was  obliged  to  convoke  all  the  barbers 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


of  the  Holy  Empire,  and  promise  them  rich  rewards  if  they  ^'oukl  come  to  his 
court.  Hans  Dockenbiirg,  an  Alsatian  barber,  restored  him  to  health  (1468) ; 
but  there  is  nothing  to  show  that  this  accidental  cure,  effected  no  doubt  by 
empirical  means,  in  anjr  way  increased  the  reputation  of  the  German  barber- 
surgeons  (Fig.  114). 

There  was  an  equal  scarcitj^  of  able  practitioners  and  learned  professors 
in  England,  where  the  surgeons  were  merely  manufacturers  and  vendors  of 
plasters  and  ointments.     When  Henry  V.  invaded  France  in  1415,  the  only 


Fig.  113. — An  Operator.— Designed  and  engraved  in  the  Si.xteenth  Century  by  J.  Amman. 


surgeon  he  had  in  his  camp  was  Thomas  Morstede,  who  was  with  difficulty 
induced  to  accompany  the  army,  bringing  with  him  twelve  assistants.  In  a 
second  expedition,  undertaken  by  the  same  prince,  the  corporation  of  London 
surgeons  could  not  supply  as  many  even  as  twelve  volunteers,  and  the  King 
was  compelled  to  authorise  Thomas  Morstede  to  press  into  his  service  as  many 
surgeons  as  the  army  required,  and  as  many  artisans  as  would  be  necessary 
for  making  and  repairing  surgical  instruments.  The  best  operators  were  to 
be  found  in  France,  and  the  celebrated  Balescone  of  Florence  professed  and 
practised  surgery  at  the  school  of  Montpellier. 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


■  6s 


After  thirty  years  of  apparent  concord  between  the  surgeons  and  barbers 
of  Paris,  the  quarrel  broke  out  afresh.  Upon  the  14th  of  May,  14'2-3,  the 
surgeons  obtained  from  the  provost  of  the  city  an  order  "  forbidding  generally 
aU  persons,  of  whatsoever  estate  or  condition,  who  are  not  surgeons,  even  of 
barbers,  from  exercising  or  practising  surgery."  This  order  was  proclaimed, 
to  the  sound  of  the  trumjjet,  at  all  the  street-corners;  but  the  barbers  appealed 
to  the  j)rovost,  who,  upon  the  4th  of  November,  1424,  withdrew  his  own 
decree.  The  surgeons,  having  appealed,  but  in  vain,  to  the  Parliament, 
resolved  not  to  visit  any  jDatient  who  had  been  attended  by  a  barber.     But 


Fig.  114. — A  German  Surgeon. — Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving,  attributed  to  Holbein,  and 
taken  from  the  German  Translation  of  the  "  Consolation  of  Philosophy,"  by  Boethius, 
Augsburg  Edition,  1537,  in  folio. 


the  barbers  shortly  after  this  obtained  fonnal  recognition  of  the  rights  which 
they  had  been  so  long  insisting  upon,  for  Colonet  Candillon,  first  barber  and 
valet  of  the  chamber  to  a  regent  and  two  kings  of  France,  was  invested  with 
the  title  of  mnhfre  et  garde  du,  mcstier,  with  the  right  of  delegating  his 
authority  in  the  principal  towns  of  the  kingdom  to  lieutenants,  who  were  to 
have  the  exclusive  right  of  inspection  over  all  the  barbers.  The  latter  formed 
at  this  period  a  numerous  association,  to  become  a  master  of  which  it  was 
necessary  to  pass  an  examination  before  a   jury  appointed  by  one    of    the 


,66  MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


lieutenants  of  the  chief  barber.  Each  new  master  barber  obtained  "  a  letter 
sealed  with  seals  "  from  the  chief  of  the  corporation,  in  exchange  for  a  sum 
of  five  sous,  and  he  also  paid  two  sous  six  deniers  for  a  copy  of  the  annual 
almaiiac,  in  which  were  recorded  the  days  of  the  year  favourable  for  bleediag 
or  the  reverse. 

The  St.  Cosmo  surgeons,  not  caring  to  carry  on  the  struggle  against  the 
barbers,  especially  after  one  of  them,  Oliver  le  Daim,  had  become  the  favourite 
of  Louis  XI.,  sought  to  obtain  the  title  of  students  of  the  University  of  Paris, 
together  with  the  privileges,  franchises,  liberties,  and  exemptions  attaching 
thereto.  The  University  granted  their  request,  but  upon  condition  of  their 
following  the  lectures  of  the  doctor-regents  of  the  Faculty  of  Medicine. 
Thus  the  surgeons  were  once  more  placed  beneath  the  sway  of  the  physicians, 
while  the  barbers,  unrestricted  in  the  exercise  of  their  profession,  obtained 
one  of  the  sixty  banners  distributed  by  Louis  XL  to  the  corporations  of  arts 
and  trades  of  the  capital  (Figs.  115  to  120).  Nor  was  this  all.  The  surgeons, 
forgetting  that  the  speciality  of  their  art  was  manual  work,  abandoned  to  the 
barbers  cases  of  incision,  dislocation,  and  fracture,  confining  themselves  to 
writing  prescriptions  or  recipes,  which,  according  to  the  University  statutes, 
appertained  to  the  masters  of  the  faculty,  and  not  to  the  surgeons. 

This  constituted  the  final  triumph  of  the  plebeian  over  the  aristocratic 
surgeons,  and  henceforth  the  barbers  formed  the  most  active  and  useful 
section  of  the  surgical  body.  They  were  to  be  met  with,  the  lance  or  bistouri 
in  their  hands,  not  only,  in  times  of  peace,  in  towns  and  villages,  but,  in  time 
of  war,  in  the  wake  of  armies  and  with  expeditions  to  distant  lands.  But  for 
them  there  would  have  been  no  such  thing  as  military  surgery.  The  intes- 
tine quarrels  of  the  doctors  did  not  get  beyond  the  faculties,  and,  notwith- 
standing their  irreconcilable  differences  of  opinions  and  systems,  the  science 
of  medicine  was  implicitly  confided  in  by  the  public  both  in  France  and  Italy. 
Most  of  the  doctors  continued  to  be  in  the  fifteenth,  as  they  had  been  in  the 
fourteenth  century,  superstitious  worshippers  of  the  Arabic  astrology,  and 
blind  imitators  of  their  ignorant  and  empirical  predecessors.  They  attributed 
to  the  seasons,  to  the  lunar  periods,  and  to  the  hours  of  the  day  and  the 
night  a  direct  action  upon  the  humours  of  the  human  body.  The  general 
belief  was  that  the  blood  rose,  during  the  daytime,  towards  the  sun,  and 
descended  into  the  lower  extremities  at  night ;  that  at  \!a.Q  third  hour  the 
bile  subsided,  so  that  its  acrid  qualities  might  not  be  mixed  with  the  course 


MEDICAL   SCIEXCES. 


167 


Fig.  115. — Banner  of  the  Corporation 
of  Phyeicans  at  Amiens. 


Fig.  117. — Banner  of  the  Corporation 
of  Physicians  in  the  Mayenne. 


Fig.  119. — Banner  of  the  Corporalioii 
of  Surgeons  at  Lc  Mans. 


Fig.  116. — Banner  of  the  Corporation 
of  Physicians  at  Vire. 


Fig.  118.  — Banner  of  the  Corporation 
of  Surgeons  at  Caen. 


Fig.  120. — Banner  of  tlie  Corporation 
of  Surgeons  at  Saintos. 


E  the  blood,  and  that  at  the  .second  hour  the  atraMlis,  and,  in  the  evening,  the 
alegm,  subsided.      Proficieney  in   astrology  implied   ]irofieiency  in  medicine 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


at  a  time  when  Tarenta  the  Portuguese,  Jacques  de  Forli,  Cernisone  of 
Parma,  Mengo  Biancheli  of  Faenza,  and  Bencio  of  Sienna,  were  still  teach- 
ing Arabic  scholasticism  in  the  chairs  of  Montpellier,  Pisa,  Padua,  Pavia,  and 
Bologna.  It  was  at  Padua  that  the  Professors  Guainer,  Bartholomew  Mon- 
tagnana,  and  Michael  Savonarola  were  the  first  to  denounce  the  prejudices 
and  ravings  of  astrological  and  cabalistic  medicine. 

The  mere  list  of  medical  works  published  from  the  discovery  of  printing 
to  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century  is  sufficient  proof  that  medical  teaching 
was  exclusively  Arabic  throughout  Europe.  The  Latin  translation  of 
Avicenna  was  printed  at  Milan  in  1473,  at  Padua  in  1476,  and  at  Strasburg 
somewhat  earlier.  The  translation  of  Mesne  had  appeared  at  Venice  in  1471, 
and  was  reprinted  almost  simultaneously  in  five  or  six  other  cities.  But  the 
works  of  Hippocrates  did  not  see  the  light  until  1526,  and  the  original  text 
of  Dioscorides  and  Galen  was  not  printed  in  France  or  Italy  till  the  begin- 
ning of  the  sixteenth  century.  The  treatise  of  Celsus  alone  met  with  any 
favour  from  the  antagonists  of  Greek  and  Roman  medicine.  Upon  the  other 
hand,  the  leading  professors  resorted  freely  to  the  printing-press  as  a  means 
of  ditfusing-  their  own  writings. 

The  illustrious  Antonio  Benivieni,  at  the  close  of  the  sixteenth  century, 
succeeded  in  substituting  for  the  fanciful  dreamings  of  the  Arab  school  the 
pure  doctrine  of  Hippocrates ;  he  commentated  the  books  of  the  early 
authors,  basing  his  themes  upon  the  investigations  of  anatomy — and  even 
of  pathological  anatomy — which  he  proclaimed  to  be  the  only  rule  of  medical 
art ;  and  his  labours  were  continued  by  his  pupils,  John  of  Vigo  and 
Berengario  of  Carpi.  The  former  published  a  work  entitled  "  Practica  in 
Arte  Chirurgica  Copiosa  "  (Eome,  1514,  in  folio),  which  went  through  twenty 
editions  in  thirty  years,  and  was  translated  into  French.  His  precepts 
were  everywhere  treated  as  oracular,  but  he  comes  down,  to  posterity,  imfor- 
tunately  for  his  reputation,  as  the  originator  of  the  system  of  cauterizuig 
wounds  inflicted  by  firearms  with  boiling  oil — a  barbarous  practice  which, 
believed  to  be  effective  for  destroj'ing  the  ^-euom  of  the  wounds,  inflicted 
infinite  torture  upon  thousands  of  patients  for  more  than  a  century. 
Berengario  raised  the  Bologna  school  from  the  discredit  into  which  it  had 
fallen,  and  his  excellent  treatise  upon  Fractures  of  the  Skull  entitled  him  to 
the  esteem  of  his  learned  successors. 

Germany  was  throughout  the  Middle  Ages  an  easy  prey  to  astrologers, 


^fEDICA  L   SC  'lEXCES. 


ibg 


wandering  Jews,  raw  apothecaries,  and  all  the  other  satellites  of  ignorance 
and  superstition  (Fig.  121).  There  were,  however,  several  eminent  men  in 
some  of  the  imperial  towns,  such   as  Strasburg,  Frankfort,  and  Hamburg, 


Kg.  121.— A  Charlatan  performing  an  Operation.— Fac-simile  of  an  Engi-aving  by  Wael 
(Seventeenth  Century). 

ad  in  the  studious  cities  of  Switzerland.  The  plain  barbers,  in  many  cases, 
Bcame  very  proficient,  owing  to  the  great  experience  they  acquired.  At 
le  same  time,  Jerome  Brunswich,  Jean  Gcrsdorf,  and  Eoeselin  obtained  a 


lyo 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


great  reputation  at  Strasburg  by  their  practical  skill,  and  by  tbeir  books, 
whicb  latter  were  translated  into  Dutcli  and  Italian. 

Up  to  the  sixteenth  centnry  the  medical  science  of  the  Middle  Ages, 
dominated  or  absorbed  by  the  Arabic  school,  was  opposed  to  the  renoyatmg 
tendencies  of  the  teaching  body.  Tradition,  routine,  and  prejudice  were  too 
strong  for  them  ;   and  a  love  of  the  supernatural,  and  vague  aspirations  after 


Fig.  122.-Portrait  of  Claude  of  France,  Daughter  of  Louis  XII.,  Painted  by  Clouet  (Sixteenth 
Century).— In  the  Collection  of  M.  Double,  Paris. 

the  unknown,  retarded  the  general  revolution,  which  advanced  slowly  but 
inevitably.  At  the  dawn  of  the  sixteenth  century  nothing  was  ready  for  a  great 
scientific  reform ;  the  medical  art  only  subsisted,  so  to  speak,  amidst  rums, 
surrounded  by  scattered  fragments  and  materials  which  had  no  architect, 
while  the  masons  who  were  to  be  employed  in  erecting  a  new  edifice  had  no 
sheds  to  work  in.  Everywhere  doubt  and  credulity  were  paramount. 
Rabelais,  with   his  sceptical  laugh,  was  a  living  satire  upon  the  degenerate 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES.  ,7, 


and  corrupted  art  in  a  society  which  was  aspiring  after  a  complete  and 
thorough  transformation.  Sceptics  of  another  kind  were  to  be  found  in 
Henry  Cornelius  Agrippa  of  Nettesheim,  who,  while  contending  against 
certain  philosophical  errors,  sought  to  substitute  for  them  theurgy  and 
magic;  or  in  Paracelsus,  who,  notwithstanding  his  splendid  intellect,  con- 
ceived it  possible  that  a  hybrid  alliance  might  be  formed  bstween  cabalistic 
mysticism  upon  the  one  hand,  and  medicine  and  occult  sciences  upon  the 
other.  The  scientific  faith  by  which  his  genius  was  inflamed  was  not  shared 
by  his  contemporaries,  Argentier,  Rondelet,  and  Joubert,  who  were  powerful 
to  attack  ancient  theories,  but  feeble  to  raise  new  ones  upon  their  ruins. 
Each  man  erected  a  system  of  his  own,  which,  after  exciting  momentary 
attention,  collapsed,  and  left  not  a  vestige  behind  it.  A  few,  however,  had 
the  good  sense  to  content  themselves  with  philological  labours,  with  trans- 
lating, revising,  and  commentating  the  works  of  Hippocrates,  Galen,  and 
the  masters  of  Greek  and  Roman  medicine ;  and  amongst  this  select  band 
may  be  mentioned  Thomas  Leoniccnus,  Gonthier  d'Andernach,  Fuchs, 
Jacques  Hoidier,  and  Louis  Buret. 

The  great  doctors  of  that  period,  those  who  devoted  themselves  to  their 
work  from  pure  love  of  science,  remained  poor,  and  with  difficulfv  made  a 
living  out  of  their  profession.  They  did  not  practise  medicine  so  much  as 
study  the  malady  and  the  patient.  Moreover,  as  there  was  no  tariff  of 
doctor's  fees,  they  sometimes  received  the  mijst  inadequate  recomi^ense  for 
their  labours.  Paracelsus  sued  a  canon  of  I5ale,  ^^•hom  he  had  cured,  for  the 
stipulated  fee  of  one  huncbed  florins  ;  but  the  judge  awarded  him  only  six 
florms.  When  the  patient  was  of  a  generous  disposition,  the  doctor  came  off 
better;  and  the  best  paid  of  all  were  those  who  attended  upon  the  sovereign 
and  the  court.  Honorat  Picquet,  physician  to  Louis  XII.,  attended  his 
daughter,  Claude  of  France  (Fig.  122),  during  a  severe  illness,  which  he 
was  fortunate  enough  to  cure,  and  Queen  Anne  of  Lrittany,  her  mother, 
rewarded  him  with  a  fee  of  three  hundred  crowns  in  gold.  Francois  I.,  who 
ifterwards  became  the  husband  of  the  Princess  Claude,  did  not  forget  this 
ilmost  miraculous  cure,  and  when  he  founded  the  Royal  College  he  created 
I  chair  of  medicine,  which  was  almost  always  filled  by  a  Frenchman. 

Switzerland  produced  a  whole  series  of  learned  phj-sicians,  who  added 
numerous  treatises  to  the  long  list  of  works  on  medicine.  Conrad  Gessner, 
lacques  Ruff,  and  GuiUaume  Fabrice  conferred  renown  upon  the  schools  of 


p 


172 


MEDICAL   SCIENCES. 


Lausanne  and  Berne,  while  the  Universities  of  Leipsic,  Ingolstadt,  and 
Wittemberg,  awakening  from  their  long  slumbers,  and  taking  the  Italian 
schools  as  their  models,  recovered  their  ancient  renown  with  anatomists  and 
doctors  such  as  Cannani,  Cesalpino,  Fallopio,  and  Eustachi.  Wherever 
there  were  several  doctors,  they  formed  a  homogeneous  and  compact  body, 
solidly  constituted,  and  jealous  of  their  rights  and  privileges ;  for  though  the 


Fig.  123.— Andrew  Vesalius.— Wood  Engraving,  after  tlie  Design  of  J.  de  Calcar,  Pupil  of  Titian. 
In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


doctors  quarrelled  amongst  themselves,  they  would  not  allow  any  one  else  to 
interfere  with  their  prerogatives. 

While  the  Universities  of  Salamanca,  Alcala,  Henarez,  Toledo,  Valencia, 
and  Coimbra  regained,  so  to  speak,  the  sviccess  which  the  Arabs  and  the  Jews 
had  accomplished  during  the  Middle  Ages,  there  arrived  upon  the  medical 
stage  of  France,  which  is  always  in  the  van  of  progress  as  of  revolution, 
the  famous  founder  of  anatomical  science,  Andrew  Vesalius  (Fig.  123),  born 
at    Brussels   in    1514,    Brissot,    Fernel,    Syh-ius,    and   Eanchin.      But  the 


MEDICAL    SCIENCES. 


'73 


barber's  art  was  almost  simultaneously  illustrated  by  Ambroise  Pare,  born  at 
Laval  in  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century,  who,  occupying  the  most 
humble  position  upon  his  arrival  in  Paris,  soon  exchanged  his  rough  barber's 
staU  upon  the  Place  St.  Michel  for  the  Louvre,  and  who.  Huguenot  as  he  was, 
was  enabled,  through  the  favour  of  several  kings,  to  reform,  or  rather  to 
create  afresh,  the  art  of  surgery  by  associating  it  with  medicine. 


Fig.  124.— Banner  of  the  Corporation  of  Apotheciiries  in  the  MayaEne. 


CHEMISTRY  AND  ALCHEMY. 


Diocletian  burns  the  Books  of  Chemistrj'. — Haroun  Al-Easchid  protects  the  Sacred  Art. — Geher, 
one  of  the  first  Chemists. — Ehazes. — Chemistry  in  honour  amongst  the  Saracens. — Avicenna, 
Serapion,  Mesue. — Alhucasis  and  Averroes. — Morienus  the  Solitary. — Albertus  Magnus  and 
Gerbert. — Vincent  of  Beaurais. — Raymond  LuUi. — The  Lullists,  or  Dreamers. — Arnauld  de 
Villeneuve. — Roger  Bacon. — Invention  of  Spectacles. — Alchemy  in  the  Fifteenth  Century.— 
J.  B.  Porta,  the  Italian. — Origin  of  the  Rosicruciana. — Paracelsus. — George  Agricola. — 
Conrad  Gessner. — Cornelius  Agrippa. — The  Story  of  Nicholas  Flamel. — -Alchemy  engenders 
Metallurgy. 


,;/p  HEMISTRY,  whicli  In  the  first  centuries 
of  tlie  Chiistiau  era  had  no  practical 
application,  consisted  merely  of  a  few 
vag'ue  and  entirely  speculative  theories, 
and  was  confounded  with  physics,  under 
the  appellations  of  divine  art,  sacred  art, 
and  sacred  science,  in  the  incoherent  mass 
of  transcendental  propositions  which 
made  up  high  philosophy.  The  word 
chcmistri/  (from  the  Greek  xw^'-'^'  f^W^'^^' 
in  Latin),  used  for  the  first  time  by 
Suidas,  a  lexicog-rapher  of  the  tenth 
century,  at  first  meant  an  alloy  of  gold  and  silver.  Suidas  mentions,  in  this 
connection,  that  the  Emperor  Diocletian,  irritated  by  a  revolt  of  the 
Egyptians  against  the  laws  of  the  empire,  had  all  their  books  of  chemistry 
committed  to  the  flames,  so  as  to  punlish  them  for  their  rebellion  by  pre- 
venting them  from  carrying  on  the  lucrative  business  arising  out  of  the 
melting  and  working  of  precious  metals  (Fig.  125).  In  another  part  of  his 
Lexicon  he  states  that  the  Golden  Fleece,  which  the  Argonauts  went  in  search 
of,  was  but  the  ancient  pajji/rus  In  which  was  contained  the  secret  for  making 
gold. 

Without  attaching  overmuch    Importance  to  these  dim  traditions,  they 


CHEMISTRY  AKD  ALCHEMY. 


»7S 


are  worth  recording,  because  they  seem  to  be  the  starting-point  of  chemistry 
in  ancient  times.  It  may  be  added  that  a  manuscrii^t  work  of  Zosinius,  a 
Greek  historian  of  the  fifth  century,  mentions  the  Xj>a,  an  aijocryjihal  work, 
in  which  the  giants,  sons  of  the  children  of  God  (the  descendants  of  Seth), 
who  are  represented  in  the  Book  of  Genesis  as  intennarrying  with  dauo-htcrs 
of  the  race  of  Cain,  registered  their  discoveries  in  the  arts  and  the  extent  of 


Fig.  125.— The  GalHc  Vulcan.— After  a  Celtic  Monument  discovered  teneath  the  Choir  of  Notre- 
Dame,  Paris,  in  1711,  and  now  preserved  in  the  Cluny  Museum. 


their  scientific  knowledge.    According  to  Scaligcr,  it  \\'as  from  the  "  Chema  " 
that  the  mother  science  derived  its  name  of  chemistry. 

It  IS  misleading,  however,  to  quote,  as  has  been  done,  the  evidence  of  a 
Greek  romance,  the  "  History  of  Theagenes,"  composed  in  the  sixteenth  century, 
though  it  has  been  asciibed  to  Athenagoi'as,  who  is  said  to  have  written  it 
about  176  A.D.  The  chemical  operations  described  in  this  apocryphal  novel 
merely  serve  to  show  that,  in   the   first  century   of  the  Christian   ei-a,  the 


.76 


CHEMISTRY  AND  ALCHEMY. 


Greeks  were  acquainted  witli  tlie  hermetic  science,  the  origin  of  which  has 
been  traced  back  to  the  mythical  Hermes  (Fig.  126),  and  which  was  after- 
wards termed  alchemy  (by  the  adjunction  of  the  Arabic  article  al  to  the  Greek 
word  xTj/jLeia),  when  the  sacred  art,  the  art  of  the  philosophers  of  the  school 
of  Alexandria,  transformed  under  the  influence  of  Mahometan  civilisation, 
began  to  spread  throughout  the  ancient  world. 

The  Bagdad  academy,  founded  by  the  Caliph  Al-Mansour,  rivalled  in 
lustre  with  the  Christian  school  of  Dschindisabour.  The  Caliphs  Haroun  Al- 
Raschid,  Al-Mamoun,  and  Motawakkel  gave  a  great  imjDetus  during  the  ninth 


Fig.  126. — The  Alchemist  Hermes. — After  an  Engraving  by  Vriese. 


century  to  the  sciences  of  observation,  to  the  experimental  methods,  and  con- 
sequently to  physics  and  chemistry.  In  a  few  instances  men  of  superior 
intelligence  shook  themselves  free  of  the  purely  theosophical  views  which  had 
too  long  influenced,  to  the  exclusion  of  all  others,  the  Eastern  philosophers, 
and  sought  in  chemistry  for  something  higher  than  the  chimerical  transmuta- 
tion of  metals. 

Two  men  of  great  scientific  repute  appeared  in  the  East  early  in  the 
eighth  century:  these  were  Al-Chindus,  who,  by  a  series  of  ingenious 
experiments,  was  one  of  the  first  to  discover  the  secrets  of  nature,  and  the 


CHEMISTR  } '  A  XD  A  L  CHEM} '.  ,77 


celebrated  Geber  (Fig.  127),  or  Yeber,  a  native  of  Mesopotamia,  who  dis- 
covered and  analyzed  red  oxide  and  the  deutochlorure  of  mercury  (corrosive 
sublimate),  nitric  acid,  hydrochloric  acid,  nitrate  of  silver,  &c.  Al-Chindus 
gave  special  attention  to  the  arts  of  magic;  but  Geber,  whose  works, 
translated  into  Latin,  are  still  extant,  notably  the  "  Sunnna  Perfcctionis  "  and 
the  "Liber  Philosophorum,"  laid  down  the  true  principles  of  chcraistry,  in 
his  researches  on  the  fusion,  the  purifying,  and  the  malleability  of  metals. 
After  this  great  chemist,  whom  Roger  Bacon  calls  the  MmUr  of  Madcn,  and 
who  deserved  to  be  the  oracle  of  chemists  in  the  Middle  Ages,  we  must 
come  down  to  the  beginning  of  the  ninth  century  for  the  next  work  of 
importance  on  chemistry,  which  was  the  book  of  the  great  Arab  doctor, 
Razi,  or  Rhazes.  This  encyclopaedia  mentions  for  the  first  time,  as  belonging 
to  the  materia  medica,  orpiment,  realgar  (a  compound  of  arsenic  and 
sulphur-),  borax,  and  certain  mixtures  of  sulphur  with  iron  and  copper,  of 
mercury  with  acids,  and  of  arsenic  with  various  substances  hitherto  unknown, 
or  at  all  events  not  used.  It  is  with  no  little  surprise  that  we  read  of 
Rhazes  recommending  to  doctors  the  use  of  various  alcohoKc  preparations  and 
animal  oils,  such  as  oil  of  ants,  which  modern  chemists  claim  as  remedies  of 
their  owii  invention.  "The  secret  art  of  chemistry,"  says  Rhazes,  who 
wrote  a  treatise  on  this  science  which  has  become  extinct,  "  is  nearer  possible 
than  impossible ;  the  mysteries  do  not  reveal  themselves  except  by  force  of 
labour  and  perseverance.  But  what  a  triumph  it  is  when  man  can  raise  a 
corner  of  the  veil  which  conceals  the  \vorks  of  God  ! " 

The  learned  M.  Emile  Begin,  whose  writings  on  chemistry  furnish  us 
^vith  material  for  this  chapter,  states  that,  from  the  :Middle  Ages  do^vnwards, 
the  science  of  chemistry  has  been  guided  by  experimental  analysis.  He  says, 
"From  Schal,  the  model  experimentalist,  to  Galen,  how  many  important 
discoveries,  original  and  fertile  ideas,  and  valuable  a],plications  have  issued 
from  the  chemist's  crucible !  Il.nv  many  lives  have  been  spent  over  it ! 
How  many  laborious  minds  have  investigated  tlio  mysterious  relations 
established  between  organic  and  organized  matter,  and  the  internal  combina- 
tions of  matter  with  itself !  The  truth,  it  must  be  added,  has  been  blurred 
mth  many  superstitious  beliefs  and  wild  fancies."  At  this  rcmok-  epoch 
learly  every  savant  was  more  or  less  of  a  dreamer.  Abnost  as  a  naatter  of 
course,  Rhazes's  great  work,  translated  into  Latin,  witlj  tlic  title  of  "El  Hhawi," 
I  vast  pharmaceutical  repertory  comijleted  by  a  nuni  of  genius  who  looked  at 


\    A 


CHEMISTRY  AND  ALCHEMY. 


science  from  the  liealing  point  of  view,  was  not,  from  its  very  character, 
calculated  to  give  us  a  complete  idea  of  the  chemical  knowledge  appertaining 
to  the  epoch  at  which  he  wrote  it.  We  can  merely  guess  that  this  knowledge 
was  in  a  pretty  advanced  stage ;  but  the  applications  of  chemistry  to 
metallurgy,  to  docimacy,  to  the  arts  of  luxury,  and  to  various  kinds  of 
iadustries,  such  as  the  melting  of  metals,  the  fabric  of  warlike  weapons, 
the  decoration  of  edifices  and  furniture,  &c.,  all  are  buried  in  the  tomb  of 
so  many  generations  of  artists  who  have  left  no  other  trace  of  their  existence 
than  a  few  of  their  productions.  We  can  learn  less  from  history  ia  this 
respect  than  from  an  attentive  study  of  the  museums  of  Spain  and  SicUy,  in 


Fig.  127. — The  Alchemist  Geber. — After  an  Engraving  ty  Vriese. 


which  are  preserved  many  art  monuments  which  testify  to  the  marvellous 
skill  of  the  Saracens  and  the  Moors. 

The  "Canon "  bj^  A^-icenna,  the  works  of  Serapion  the  j^oimger,  and  of  Mesue 
(see  the  chapter  on  Medical  Sciences),  contain,  however,  some  iaterestiBg 
details  as  to  chemical  operations,  which  show  that  there  was  gradual  progress, 
and  every  now  and  then  a  discovery  of  importance.  Mesue  says  that  in  the 
middle  of  the  ninth  century  certain  principles  had  been  recognised  as  to  the 
analytical  classification  of  the  bodies  which  compose  organic  matter. 
Albucasis,  a  savant  of  the  eleventh  century,  and  a  student  in  the  Arab  school 
at  Cordova,  who,  after  rising  to  the  highest  rank  as  physician  and  surveyor. 


CHEMISTRY  AXD  ALCHEMF. 


'70 


was  not  above  preparing  his  own  remedies  and  instruments,  heralded,  by  the 
independence  of  his  ideas  and  their  practical  applicability,  a  new  era  for 
science,  amidst  the  misty  subtleties  of  Islamism.  Avcnzoar  and  Averroes 
were  the  principal  apostles  of  this  luminous  doctrine,  which  seemed  destined 
to  illuminate  iii  a  short  time  the  whole  scientific  world.  Unfortunately  the 
human  intellect  was  easily  dragged  out  of  its  depth  in  the  Middle  Ages. 
The  investigators  and  inventors,  such  as  the  learned  Morienus,  who  fled  from 
Rome  into  the  deserts  of  Egypt  (Fig.  149),  had  great  difficulty  in  steering 
clear  of  the  shoals  of  experimental  science  in  a  century  when  the  operations 
of  what  was  called  the  art  of  Jin?  were  confounded  with  magic.  Their 
labours  in  chemistry  and  metallurgy  might  have  caused  them  to  be  con- 
demned as  sorcerers. 

The  Court  of  Rome  deserves  praise  for  its  good  sense  in  that,  disregarding 
popular  superstitions,  it  summoned  from  his  ceU  a  humble  Dominican  monk, 
afterwards  Albertus  Magnus,  to  make  him  master  of  the  Sacred  Palace,  and 
subsequently  Bishop  of  Ratisbon  (1260).  But,  as  we  have  already  said  (see  the 
chapter  on  PhUomphical  Sciencps),  this  2ihilosopher  monk,  after  he  had  been 
made  bishop,  wearying  of  earthly  greatness  and  pomp,  abandoned  them  without 
a  sigh  for  the  exclusion  of  the  cloister,  in  order  to  pursue  in  silence  his 
favourite  scientific  researches.  This  was  why  he  was  believed  to  be  in  com- 
munication with  the  powers  of  darkness,  and  it  was  said  that  he  was  guilty 
of  magic,  and  that  he  made  gold.  Peojile  came  from  all  parts  to  see  him  and 
question  him  as  to  the  absti'act  arts  of  chemistry.  His  recipes  were  in  great 
request,  his  manuscripts  were  copied  by  the  thousand,  and  jDosterity,  which 
has  forgotten  all  about  the  monk  and  bishop,  and  which  does  not  read  his 
mmierous  philosophical  works,  still  repeats  with  honour  the  name  of  the 
Great  Albert. 

It  must  not  be  imagined  that  the  princes  and  sovereigns  of  the  Middle 
Ages  looked  at  the  interests  of  science  from  as  lofty  a  point  of  view  as  many 
of  the  popes.  Nevertheless,  a  French  king,  wliose  venerated  memoi-y  was 
mercilessly  aspersed  by  the  philosophers  of  the  last  century,  Louis  IX., 
employed  as  tutor  for  his  children  a  Dominican  monli,  the  Pliny,  (he  Varro  of 
the  Middle  Ages.  This  was  Vincent  of  Bcauvais,  the  wonderful  cncyclopredist, 
who  lived,  so  to  speak,  amongst  the  ancients  at  a  time  when  their  most  splen- 
did works  were  despised  and  reviled.  Vincent  of  Beauvais  was  accused  of 
sorcery  because  he  avoided  the  idle  discussions  of  the  schools,  in  order  to 


i8o 


CHEMISTRY  AND  ALCHEMY. 


work  in  his  laboratory  in  the  St.  Cliapelle  yard.  The  high  intelligence  of 
the  King,  and  the  piety  of  his  mother,  Queen  Blanche,  were  scarcely  enough 
to  shield  their  learned  protege  from  the  most  absurd  accusations.  At 
midnight  people  often  used  to  creep  along  the  quays  of  the  Seine  to  see 
whether  they  could  get  a  glimpse,  reflected  in  the  river,  of  the  magic 
furnaces  in  which  Master  Vincent  was  supposed  to  evoke  his  familiar  spirit. 

At  about  the  same  period  there  was  much  talk  of  another  monk,  the 
alchemist  Raymond  Lulli  (born  at  Palma,  in  the  island  of  Majorca),  who, 
after  a  long  and  eventful  life  of  wanderings  and  adventures,  came  to  a  tragic 


Fig.  128. — The  Alchemist  Raymond  Lulli. — After  tin  Engraving  by  Vriese. 


end,  being  stoned  by  the  populace  of  Tunis  in  1315.  A  recent  attempt 
has  been  made  to  prove  that  amongst  his  numerous  works  on  philosophy  and 
theology,  those  which  treat  of  alchemy  should  be  ascribed  to  another  savant 
almost  his  contemporary,  and  bearer  of  the  same  name.  But  it  was  precisely 
these  works  which  had  made  the  reputation  of  the  theolog-ian  of  Majorca.  A 
thousand  absurd  stories  were  related  of  this  singiilar  man,  and  it  was  said 
that  he  would  have  been  prosecuted  as  a  sorcerer  bj-  the  Inquisition,  imless  he 
had  succeeded,  by  the  help  of  Edward  I.  of  England,  in  coining  six  millions 
of   false   money,  with  which  the  English  monarch  promised  to  undertake 


CHEMISTRV  AND  ALCHEMV.  i8r 


a  fresh  crusade  against  the  infidels.  Rajanond  Liilli  (Fig.  128)  left  behind 
him  numerous  disciples,  who  were  termed  LuUista  or  dreamers,  and  who  made 
a  cunning  use  of  the  sad  end  of  their  leader,  just  as  the  Court  of  Eome 
seemed  inclined  to  accord  him  the  honoiu's  of  beatification.  Concealing 
beneath  the  prestige  of  black  magic  their  attempts  at  chemical  experimental- 
isino-,  the  Lullists  propagated  a  report  that  the  soul  of  the  blessed  martyr 
appeared  at  certain  hours  of  the  night,  and  confided  to  his  neoph3'tes  the 
secrets  of  heaven,  especiall}'  touching  the  divine  art  of  transfonning  into  fine 
fold  the  commonest  of  metals.  The  Lullists  enjoyed  considerable  credit  all 
over  Europe,  and  although  it  might  have  been  supposed  that  this  sect,  owing 
to  its  occult  and  mysterious  practices,  would  have  incurred  the  rigour  of  the 
ecclesiastical  and  civil  laws,  the  clergy  and  the  magistrates  exhibited  no 
little  tolerance  towards  the  eminent  men  belonging  to  it.  The  mysterious 
meetings  of  the  Lvdlists  were  surrounded,  especially  in  Germany,  with  much 
soleron  foi-mality,  being  held  at  night,  in  wild  and  uninhabited  regions, 
and,  if  possible,  near  iron  or  copper  mines  (Fig.  129),  where  the  ruggedaess 
of  the  soil  and  the  bareness  of  the  landscape  were  in  harmony  with  the 
arcana  of  the  great  work.  It  is  beheved  that  the  Brothers  of  the  Rosy 
Cross,  who  derived  their  name  from  a  Gennan  gentleman  called  Rosenkrutz, 
succeeded  the  Lidlists  in  the  fifteenth  century. 

A  contemporaiy  of  Rajmiond  Lulli,  and  versed,  as  he  was,  in  Eastern 
languages,  mathematics,  philosophy,  and  medicine,  Arnauld  de  Villeneuve,  a 
native  of  Languedoc,  also  interrogated  nature  by  the  anal3'sis  of  bodies  and 
of  substances.  He  investigated  more  particidarly  the  mysteries  of  chemical 
science  as  bearing  upon  medicine,  and  in  this  way  he  discovered  the  various 
acids  since  named  sulphuric,  niti'ic,  and  muriatic.  It  is  said  that  he  was  the 
first  person  to  make  alcohol  and  spirits  of  wine.  Arnauld  de  Villeneuve  was, 
together  with  Albertus  Magnus,  one  of  the  most  eminent  exponents  in  the 
Middle  Ages  of  the  experimental  art,  which,  still  in  a  state  of  confusion,  was 
exposed  to  the  suspicions  of  the  ignorant,  and  could  oidy  be  practised  under 
the  protection  of  kings,  or  in  the  solitude  of  the  cloister.  It  is  a  matter  for 
regret,  however,  that  men  of  such  rare  intelligence  as  Arnauld  de  Villeneuve 
and  Raymond  Lulli  should  have  embraced  the  opinion  and  systems  of 
j  theosophy,  which  was  a  source  of  false  and  absurd  theories  that  often  inteifci'cd 
with  the  application  of  the  most  rcmaikable  discoveries  in  science. 

At  the  same  ej)och  England  had  the  honour  of  giving  birth  to   Roger 


CHEMISTRY  AND  ALCHEMY. 


Bacon  (Fig.  130),  called  the  Admirable  Doctor,  wlio  liad  a  narrow  escape  of 
paying  with  his  life  the  crime  of  being  in  advance  of  his  age.  He  passed 
part  of  his  life  in  prison.  Sal  vino  degli  Armati  had  just  invented  a  new 
process  for  making  glass  of  a  lenticular  shape,  and  Bacon  took  up  this 
invention,  and,  having  perfected  it,  made  achromatic  glasses  and  the 
telescope,  thus  opening  the  immensities  of  the  sky  to  future  astronomers. 
He  discovered  a  combustible  substance  similar  to  phosphorus,  and  with 
saltpetre,    which    had   hitherto   only   been   used   medicinally,    he   composed 


Fig.  129. — The  Miner. — Designed  and  engraved  in  the  Sixteenth  Century  by  J.  Amman. 


gunpowder.  There  is  no  truth  in  the  story  of  his  having  been  the  first 
victim  of  his  own  discovery  ;  for,  though  he  did  not  foresee  the  tremendous 
consequences  arising  out  of  the  manufacture  of  this  inflammable  mixture, 
he  had  assiuned  that  it  would  bring  aboiit  a  revolution  in  the  art  of 
war.  The  melting  of  bells,  practised  as  early  as  the  thirteenth  century, 
suggested  the  idea  of  casting  cannon  (Fig.  131).  Eoger  Bacon  had 
investigated  all  the  sciences,  and  yet,  upon  his  death-bed,  he  bitterly 
exclaimed,  "  I  repent  of  having  laboured  so  much  in  the  interest  of  science. 
Thus  from  the   beginning   of  the  fourteenth   century,   France,    Germany, 


CHEMISTRY  AXD  ALCHEMF. 


'«3 


and  England  each  produced  almost  simultaneously  one  of  the  most  illustrious 
representatives  of  what  was  called,  in  the  language  of  the  day,  the  great  art ; 
that  is  to  say,  the  knowledge  of  the  secrets  of  nature.  Of  these  three 
learned  philosophers.  Bacon  possessed  the  highest  abilities  and  the  largest 
powers  of  conce23tion,  and  all  three  of  them  attracted  numerous  audiences  to 
their  lectures,  for  they  contrived  to  invest  even  the  most  common  subject 
with  interest  by  their  way  of  treating  it.  AVhen  Bacon  described  the  motion 
of  the  celestial  sphere  and  the  regular  march  of  the  planets  ;  when  he  expounded 
his  theory  of  the  physical  world,  and  set  forth  the  laws  which  regulate  the 
matter   and  cause  the  transformation  of  substances,  he  was  listened  to  with 


Fig.  130. — The  Alchemist  Roger  Bacon. — After  an  Engraving  by  Vriese. 


admiration  and  in  complete  silence,  for  he  was  himself  convinced  by  the 
proofs  which  he  had  obtained,  and  bj'  the  great  problems  which  he  believed 
that  he  had  settled,  and  he  communicated  his  own  convictions  to  his  audience. 
But,  upon  the  other  hand,  experimental  science  often  borrowed  its  proofs 
from  the  most  impudent  imposture.  Thus  Arnauld  de  Villencuve  showed  the 
Parisians  copper  jjlates  which  he  declared  that  he  had  just  converted  into 
silver,  and  silver  foil  which  he  alleged  he  could  convert  into  tine  gold.  The 
people  who  witnessed  these  tricks  looked  upon  them  as  so  many  miracles,  little 
knowing  that  a  little  nitric  acid  mixed  with  water  would  have  destroyed  the 
illusion. 


CHEMISTRY  AND  ALCHEMY. 


The  Inquisition  burnt  the  books  on  alchemy  and  magic  written  bj' 
Arnauld  de  Villeneuve ;  but,  through  the  intermediacy  of  Pope  Clement  V., 
two  of  his  works,  the  "  Rosarium  Philosophorum  "  and  the  "  Flos  Florum," 
were  spared,  though  modern  science  has  not  been  able  to  extract  much  that 
is  usefid  from  these  obscure  and  diffuse  compilations.  The  encyclopaedic 
writings  of  Albertus  Magnus,  piously  preserved  at  Cologne,  were  not  in  any 
danger  of  ecclesiastical  censure,  and,  as  soon  as  printing  was  discovered,  they 
were  published  in  several  towns  of  the  Rhine  provinces.     The  "  Opus  Majus  " 


Fig.  131.— Casting  of  a  Bell,  in  presence  of  a  Bishop  who  gives  it  his  benediction.— After  the 
"Rationale  Divinorum  OfEciorura,"  by  William  Durand.— Manuscript  of  the  fourteenth 
Century.— In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroiae  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


of  Roger  Bacon  found  in  the  library  of  the  Vatican  the  hospitality  which  it 
deserved,  and  it  may  be  said  that  this  book,  dedicated  to  Pope  Clement  lY., 
was  a  deposit  for  all  the  science  of  the  Middle  Ao-es 

Most  of  the  disciples  of  Roger  Bacon,  Arnaidd  de  VilleneuvB,  and  Albertus 
Magnus  abandoned  the  chimerical  attempt  to  effect  the  transmutation  of 
n^etals,  and  devoted  little  time  to  operations  in  the  laboratory,  and  those  who 
continued  to  practise  the  experimental  method  derived  scarcely  any  benefit 
fro.n  tlte  discoveries  which  they  reaUy  did  make,  on  account  of  their  absurd 
efforts  to  discover  the  philosopher's  stone  (Fig.  132). 


CHEMISTRY  AXD  ALCHEMV. 


>8S 


The  first  who  hooked  upon  the  practical  side  of  chemistry  properly  so 
called  was  Gcutile  Geutili  de  Foligno,  whose  treatise  upon  doses  and  pro- 
portions of  medicine  ma}'  be  looked  upon  as  a  summai'y  of  medical  chemistry, 
which  was  verj'  complete  for  the  time  at  which  it  was  composed.  Xext  to 
him  come  Antonio  Quainer  of  Pavia,  who  manufactured  artificial  mineral 
waters ;  Saladin  of  Ascoli,  and  Arduino  of  Pesaro,  whose  works  enumerate 
the  substances  having  a  mineral  base  which  have  been  discovered  by  the 
alchemists. 

It  is  to  be  rcOTetted  that  nothing  of  what  related  to  the  labours  of  the 


Fig.  132. — Tbe  Gorman  Alchemist. — Fac-simile  of  a  AVond  Engraving  attributed  to  Holbein,  and 
taken  from  the  German  Translation  of  the  "  Consolation  C'f  I'liilosophy  "  by  Boethius, 
Augsburg,  1.537,  in  folio. 


mdustrial  arts  at  this  epoch,  as  in  the  jircccding  ones,  has  Ijccn  recorded  in 
special  treatises,  for  by  this  neglect  we  have  lost  many  ingenious  processes, 
whilst  others,  which  might  have  been  ready  to  hand,  liave  nuly  since  been 
discovered  cpiite  accidentally,  and  after  long  and  lalioi-inus  rese:ircli.  More 
profit  would  have  been  derived  from  consulting  the  daily  note-book  of 
an  artisan  of  that  period  than  the  farrago  of  those  who  were  engaged  in  the 
great  work  ;   i.r.  the  .search  for  tlie  phihisoplier's  stone. 

li  li 


i86 


CHEMISTRY  AXD  ALCHEMY. 


Moreorer,  the  alchemists  went  to  Tvork  in  an  unmethodical  way,  and 
without  any  scientific  theory.  Their  systems  as  to  the  moral  value  of  metals, 
as  to  the  existence  of  an  exceptional  and  indecomposable  body,  and  as  to  the 
search  for  a  universal  panacea  could  not  lead  to  any  result.  They  took  one 
by  one  the  substances  belonging  to  the  thi-ee  kingdoms  of  natiire,  and  treated 
them  by  fire  and  by  water ;  they  combined  them  together,  noting  carefully 
the  isolated  phenomena"  produced  by  the  chemical  operation ;  and  they  next 
endeavoured  to  connect  as  far  as  possible  these  phenomena  with  the  most 
extraordinary  ideas,  and  then  to  give  to  the  products  obtained  a  use  in 
conformity  -with  their  external  characteristics.  If  some  unexpected  revela- 
tions issued  from  the  rows  of  retorts  and  matrasses  which  the  alchemist  was 
at  work  upon,  they  were  attributed  to  chance,  which  sometimes  led  to  some 


fig.  133.— A  Mint  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — Reduced  Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engrai-ing  at  the 
base  of  a  Monetarj-  Slip,  printed  at  Lourain  in  1487.— In  the  Burgundy  Library,  Brussels. 


fortunate  results  in  these  absurd  processes  of  experimental  chemistry.  In 
the  fifteenth  centurj-  the  alchemists  had,  imconsciously  in  most  cases,  been 
the  means  of  disclosing  to  science,  apart  fi-om  several  substances  comprised  in 
the  materia  medica,  the  existence  of  bismuth,  Hver  of  sulphur,  regulus  of 
antimony,  and  volatQe  fluorine  of  alkaH.  They  were  expert  in  distilliag 
alcohol,  in  volatilising  mercury,  and  in  obtaining  sulphuric  acid  by  the 
sublimation  of  stdphiu' ;  in  preparing  aqua  regia  and  various  kinds  of  ether, 
and  in  purifying  the  alkaHs.  They  also  had  a  scarlet  dye  for  cloth  superior 
to  anythmg  of  the  present  day.  Several  processes  in  glass-staining — ^which, 
though  said  to  be  lost,  were  merely  abandoned  or  forgotten— were  invented 
by  glass-blowers  and  enameUers.  In  aU  probabiHty  the  effects  of  hydrogen, 
employed  as  a  light-giving  medium,  revealed  themselves  to  the  alchemists 


CHEMISTRV  AND  ALCHEMY. 


.87 


si^ontaneously ;  and  we  know  that  a  German  alchemist,  Eck  of  Sulzhach, 
had  ascertained  the  existence  of  oxygen,  which  was  not  demonstrated  by 
Priestley  until  three  hundred  years  afterwards. 

Alchemy  was  at  the  apogee  of  its  celebrity  in  the  beginning  of  the 
fifteenth  century,  notwithstanding  the  royal  edicts  against  it  and  the  sus- 
picions of  imposture  entertained  concerning  its  adherents.  Not  only  did 
sovereigns  ask  them  to  supply  gold  for  the  mints  (Figs.  1^33  and  134),  but 
the  outside  public,  who  \yvX  faith  in  the  wonders  of  potable  gold,  jjurchased 


Fig.  134. — The  Officer  of  the  Mint. — Designed  and  engraved  in  the  Si.\teenth  Century 
by  J.  Amman. 


from  them,  at  an  extravagant  price,  certain  metallic  mixtures  combined  with 
ointments  and  vegetable  juices  ^^■hich  were  warranted  to  cure  diseases, 
preserve  the  appearance  of  youth,  render  men  invulnerable,  produce  pleasant 
dreams,  prolong  liuman  life,  and  so  forlli. 

It  was  at  this  period  that  were  composed  most  of  the  treatises  upon 
alchemy,  which  were  a  crude  mass  of  incoherent  propositions  and  wild 
assertions,  a  mixture  of  poesy  and  insanity,  in  which  all  logical  ideas  were 
lost  amidst  a  mass  of  stilted  phraseology,  but  through  which  breathed  a  blind 
but  evidently  fervent  faith.      Amidst  this  chaotic  collection  of   absurdities 


Fig.  13o.— The  Bxtraction  of  Precious  Metiils.— Pieces  in  tlie  Ceremouiiil  Collar  of  the  Senior 
Momher  of  Iho  Goldsmiths  id  Ghent.— Fifteenth-Centurj  Chased  Silver,  size  of  the  original. 


■^^TxSF??. 


r-^ 


•rig.  136. — The  FounJrj- of  Precious  Melala. — Pii'ces  in  the  Ceremonial  Collar  of  the  Senior  Member 
of  the  Goldsmiths  at  Ghent.— Fifteenth-Century  Chased  Silver,  size  of  the  original. 


igo  CHEMISTRY  AND  ALCHEMY. 


everytliing  grand  or  mysterious  was  attributed  by  tbe  alchemists  to  the 
demons  which  people  the  air,  fire,  and  water,  to  the  stars  which  are  superior 
to  the  human  and  to  the  Divine  will,  to  mysterious  sympathies  existing 
between  the  Creator  and  his  creatures,  and  to  the  hjrbrid  combinations 
of  mineral  and  vegetable  substances.  The  fifteenth  century  followed,  in 
regard  to  the  arts  and  sciences,  the  errors  of  the  preceding  age,  which  was 
full  of  arrand  manifestations,  which  are  to  be  traced  in  those  wonderful 
Gothic  monuments  in  which  the  statuary  has  represented  a  mass  of  figures, 
sacred  and  profane,  real  and  imaginary,  and  which  give  one  the  impression 
of  being  a  book  of  alchemy,  written  with  a  chisel  upon  stone.  And  yet, 
amidst  this  passion  for  the  strange  and  the  supernatural,  there  were  a 
few  patient  and  laborious  scholars  who  only  devoted  themselves  to  the 
operations  of  the  laboratory  in  order  to  increase  the  progress  of  chemistry  by 
logical  experiment.  Such  was  the  Italian  John  Baptist  Porta,  who  was  the 
first  to  allude  to  the  tree  of  Diana  and  the  flowers  of  tin,  and  who  discovered 
the  means  of  reducing  the  metallic  oxides  and  of  colouring  silver ;  or,  again, 
Isaac  and  Jean  Hollandus,  makers  of  enamel  and  of  artificial  gems,  who  have 
described  their  process  of  work  with  great  minuteness  and  precision;  or, 
again,  Sidonius  and  Sendivogius,  who  put  into  execution  several  new 
processes  for  dyeing  stuffs. 

In  1488  the  Venetian  Government,  following  the  example  of  Henry  VII. 
of  England  and  several  other  monarchs  of  the  time,  issued  a  severe  interdict 
against  alchemist  practices,  but  the  men  who  pretended  to  make  gold 
continued  their  so-called  transmutations.  At  this  epoch  it  was  that  the 
Eosicrucians  formed,  under  the  name  of  Voarchodumia,  a  secret  association, 
the  principal  object  of  which  was  the  discovery  of  gold  and  silver  mines, 
and,  above  aU,  that  of  the  great  work  (Figs.  135  and  136).  In  the  six- 
teenth century  science  began  to  free  itself  from  the  ancient  routine  of  the 
Middle  Ages,  and  to  seek  a  road  in  which  she  might  use  reason  as  a  staff, 
and  observation  as  a  lantern  to  her  path.  And,  strange  to  say,  it  was 
alchemy  which  took  the  initiative  of  this  scientific  reform.  Paracelsus  (born 
at  Eiusiedlen,  in  Switzerland,  in  1493),  to  whom  frequent  aUusion  was  made 
in  a  previous  chapter  {Medical  and  Occult  Sciences),  may  be  considered  the 
most  characteristic  tj-pe  of  contemporary  alchemists.  He  represented,  so  to 
speak,  two  men  combined  in  one :  upon  the  one  hand,  there  was  the  daring 
refomer  who   upset  all   the  received  ideas  of  medicine    since  the  days  of 


CHEMISTRY  AND  ALCHEMY. 


191 


Ilippocrales,  and  who,  b^-  his  incessant  exijcriments,  made  many  additions  to 
the  arts  ;  upon  the  other,  the  thcosophist — we  may  even  saj^,  the  impostor — 
who  pretended  that  he  was  one  of  those  privileged  beings  who  receive  their 
knowledge  direct  from  God  by  mere  Divine  emanation.  This  deifying  of  the 
illustrious  savant  contributed  to  the  success  of  his  doctrines ;  but  he  ought,  in 
his  own  interests,  to  have  held  more  aloof  from  men,  and  lived  in  a  sort  of 
mysterious  solitude  (Fig.  137).  After  an  adventurous  career  as  a  youth, 
Paracelsus  had  acquired,  at  the  age  of  thirty-two,  an  immense  reputation, 
and   his   pupils   at    the    University  of   Bale,  where   he    filled    the   chair  of 


rig.  137. — The  Alchemist  Paracelsus. — After  an  Engraving  by  Vriese. 


medicine,  were  to  be  counted  by  the  thousand.  The  enthusiasm  was  so  great 
that  princes  and  nobles  swelled  his  cortege,  and  the  people  kissed  the  skirts 
of  his  robes  and  the  buckles  of  his  shoes.  He  had  cured  eighteen  notable 
personages  who  were  believed  to  be  suffering  from  incurable  diseases,  and 
there  was  a  regular  scramlde  to  obtain  the  elixir  .supposed  to  insure  indefinite 
prolongation  of  human  life. 

Paracelsus,  having  jn'obably  promised  more  than  he  was  able  to  perform, 
became  so  unpopular  that  he  was  obliged  to  leave  Bale,  and,  accompanied  bj' 
a  few  faithful  followers,  to  resume  his  wanderings,  the  result  being  that  he 
died  m  misery  in  a  ho.spital.     Before  his  time,  Henry  Cornelius  Agrippa  of 


^gj  CHEMISTRY  AND  ALCHEMY. 


Nettesheim,  philosoj^her,  plij'slcian,  and  alcliemist,  underwent  the  same  fate 
at  Grenoble  (1535),  after  having  been  imprisoned  at  Brussels  as  a  magician. 
We  wiU  not  attempt  to  justify  the  strange  theory  which  has  been  called  the 
pantheism  of  Paracelsus,  a  theory  in  which  he  only  pretended  to  beKeve 
to  suit  his  O'wn  purposes  and  strike  the  imaginations  of  those  who  would 
not,  perhaps,  have  paid  any  heed  to  more  sober  ideas.  But  it  must  be 
pointed  out  that  in  his  chemical  operations  Paracelsus  had  constantly  in  view 
the  simplification  of  the  processes  resorted  to,  and  the  discovery  of  the 
elementary  princiijles  and  of  the  truly  active  mediums  of  nature.  His 
celebrated  arcana  amount  to  this,  and  he  says,  "  The  true  object  of  alchemy 
is  to  prepare  arcana,  not  to  make  gold."  Starting  from  this  principle, 
he  denoimced  the  tavern-keepers  and  cooks,  who  drown  the  virtue  of  the 
best  arcana  in  soups ;  the  apothecaries,  who  can  only  compose  insipid  syrups 
and  repulsive  decoctions,  when  they  have  ready  to  hand,  at  the  bottom  of 
their  stills  (Figs.  138  to  147),  extracts  and  dyes  derived  from  the  best 
vegetables  and  minerals.  Paracelsus  was  equally  indignant  with  the  doctors, 
whose  barbarous  prescriptions  embodied  a  mass  of  substances  which 
neutralised  each  other.  He  was  very  much  ojDposed  to  the  use  of  correctives 
added  to  certain  pharmaceutical  ^^reparations,  especially  when  these  cor- 
rectives had  no  natural  relation  with  the  preparations  used.  He  argued  that 
it  was  necessary  to  discover  the  quintessence  of  plants — the  ether  of  Aristotle — 
and  the  active  principles  of  organized  bodies,  isolating  them  with  great  care, 
and  using  them  to  avert  the  different  functional  disorders  of  the  animal 
machine.  Bones  of  the  hare,  coral,  mother-of-pearl,  and  other  analogous 
bodies,  from  which  he  claimed  to  extract,  by  chemical  process,  the  arcana, 
were  doubtless  used  by  him  for  the  sole  purpose  of  misleading  the  inquisitive  ; 
and  when  he  wished  to  render  these  mixtures  elEcacious,  he  added  to  them 
certain  potent  substances  of  which  he  had  previously  ascertained  the 
influence. 

In  any  event,  it  may  safely  be  said  that,  owing  to  the  labours  of 
Paracelsus,  alchemy  exchanged  its  speculative  for  a  practical  character ;  and 
this  is  so  true  that  George  Agricola  (born  at  Misnia  in  1494),  who  proceeded 
with  greater  caution  than  Paracelsus,  effected,  without  any  disturbance  or 
noisy  discussion,  the  auspicious  revolution  in  metallurgy  which  his  ardent 
contemporary  was  unable  to  achieve  without  a  fierce  strua-ffle  in  medicine  and 
the  phanuacopreia.    Agricola  resided  at  Bale,  and  his  sedate  temperament  was 


CIIEMISTRV  AXn  ALC^I■:^n'. 


'03 


in  keeping  with  the  manners  of  the  inhabitants  of  that  business  city,  while  his 
scientific  discoveries  could  not  but  please  and  interest  them,  when  they  found 
it  possible  to  give  them  an  immediate  and  useful  ai)plicatiou  to  arts  and 
industrj'.  From  about  1530 — at  which  period  Paracelsus  had  already 
quitted  Bale — to  1560 — that  is  to  say,  five  j'ears  after  the  death  of  Agricola 


Figs.  138  to  HI.—  Furaaco,  Ketorts,  Stills,  and  Distilling  Apparutus,  as  used   by  Cheuiists  and 
Alchemists  of  the  Sixteenth  Century. — After  an  Engraving  by  Vriese. 

— the  printing-presses  of  Wcsthmcr  and  Frobcn  were  incessantly  publishing 
Latin  works,  most  of  them  illustrated  with  wood  engravings,  in  which  the 
father  of  metallurgic  science  expounded  the  results  of  his  long  series  of 
investigations. 

Henceforth,  chimiastric,  or  the  art  of  transforming  bcdits  ai;d  substances 

c  c 


19+ 


CHEMISTRY  AND  ALCHEMY. 


from  a  medical  point  of  view,  and  metallurgy,  or  tlie  art  of  extracting  and 
purifyino-  metals  for  the  use  of  industry-two  sciences  having  many  pomts 
of  contact  and  of  diiference-advanced  in  parallel  lines  upon  the  road  of 
proo-ress.  Alchemy,  ceasing  to  be  experimental  and  becoming  merely 
psychological,  was  abandoned  to  the  study  of  a  few  fanatical  adherents,  and 
finally  disappeared  altogether  from  the  enlarged  domain  of  positive  science. 
A  history  of  the  conflict  between  the  psychological  alchemists  and  the 
cliinuadreH  (or  new  chemists)  would  be  a  very  interesting  one,  especially  if  it 
related  how  the  genius  of  the  Middle  Ages  gradually  lost  the  ground  which 
it  had  held  for  so  many  centuries;  but  the  place  for  such  a  history  is  not 


Figs.  142  and  1  i3.— Furnaces,  as  used  by  the  Chemists  and  Alchemists  of  the  Middle  Ages. 
After  an  Engraving  by  Vriese. 

hei'C.  We  can  only  summarise  the  salient  facts,  deducing  from  them 
afterwards  the  principal  consequences.  The  conflict  was  fiercest  upon  the 
banks  of  the  Rhine.  While  Graterole,  Bracheschus,  and  Alexander  of 
Stichten  sided  with  the  alchemists,  and  upheld  the  speculative  theories  of 
Avicenna,  Gerber,  and  Raymond  LiiUi,  Conrad  Gesner,  Thomas  Mufetus, 
and  Nicholas  Guibert  examined  the  science  by  the  light  of  the  ideas  which 
had  inaugurated  the  new  period. 

In    the    meanwhile,    Cornelius    Ao-rippa,    the    sceptic,    who    from    his 

Oil  (J 

childhood  had  been  familiar  with  the  mysteries  of  alchemy,  and  even  d 
necromancy,  was  tracing  the  line  which  separated  science  from  speculation, 


CHEMISTRV  AND  ALCHEMY. 


'95 


and  the  art  from  the  mere  trade  m.ade  out  of  it.  This  was  Ihe  art 
"  concerning  which  he  coukl  say  a  good  deal  more,  had  he  not  taken  an  oath  of 
secrecy  when  he  was  initiated  into  its  mj'sterics,"  which  means,  no  doubt,  that 
he  could  disclose  a  g-ood  deal  of  roguery  and  imposture.  lie  says,  "  I  could 
show  the  alchemist  fabricating  azure,  cinnabar,  ore,  vermilion,  musical  gold, 
and  other  admixtures  of  colours  :  I  could  show  the  same  man  committing  a 
regular  fraud,  forging  a  Bonnet  jihilosopher's  stone,  by  contact  with  ^\•hich  aU 


Figs.  144  to  147. — Furnaces  and  various  Apparatus,  as  used  liy  the  Chemists  and  Aluhemista  of 
the  Middle  Ages. — Alter  an  Engravinj^  hy  Vriese. 


other  stones  are  converted  into  gold  or  siher,  according  to  the  desire  of 
Midas.  I  would  drive  such  a  man  out  of  the  country,  and  confiscate  his 
goods ;  I  would  inflict  upon  him  bodily  chastisement,  for  he  offends  God,  the 
Christian  religion,  and  .society."  Agrippa,  after  having  promised  to  keep 
silence,  continues,  carried  away  by  his  indignation,  "  It  would  take  too  much 
tune  to  recount  aU  the  follies,  the  idle  secrets,  and  the  enigmas  of  this  trade : 
of  the  green  lion,  the  fugitive  stag,  the  flying  eagle,  the  inflated  toad,  of  the 


156  CHEMISTRY  AND  ALCHEMY. 


crow's  head,  of  the  black  blacker  than  the  black,  of  the  seal  of  Mercury,  of 
the  mud  of  wisdom,  and  other  countless  absurdities  of  a  like  kind.  As  to 
the  science  itself,  in  which  I  am  well  versed,  and  which  must  not  be 
confounded  with  the  trade  made  out  of  it,  I  believe  it  to  be  worthy  of  the 
honour  which  Thucydides  says  should  be  paid  to  an  honest  woman :  that  of 
talking  about  her  as  little  as  possible."  Agrippa  has  also  left  a  very  graphic 
description  of  the  sad  condition  to  which  the  alchemists  of  the  lower  ranks 
were  then  reduced,  "  travelling  from  fair  to  fair,  in  order  to  make  a  little 
money  by  sale  of  white-lead,  vermilion,  antimony,  and  other  drugs  used  by 
women  for  painting  the  face,  drugs  which  the  Scripture  calls  ointments  of 
lust."  These  bastards  of  science  stole  when  they  could  not  earn  money,  and 
finally  resorted  to  the  coining  of  false  money  (Fig.  148).  They  were,  as 
Agrippa  called  them,  "  gaol-birds."  Such  were  the  surviving  alchemists  in 
France  in  the  reign  of  Francois  L,  and  they  were  far  more  calculated  to 
discredit  the  spirit  of  experimentalising  than  to  bring  it  into  favour  amongst 
the  upj)er  classes.  The  famous  Nicholas  Flamel  had  adopted  very  different 
means  from  these,  a  hundred  and  fifty  years  before,  to  make  himself  popular 
amongst  the  people  of  Paris.  A  sworn  professor  of  the  University,  a 
philosopher,  a  naturalist,  and  doubtless  also  an  alchemist,  Flamel  enjoyed 
a  reputation  for  probity  which  had  probably  not  less  to  do  with  his  wealth 
than  the  cause  of  the  holy  stone,  so  long  held  in  bad  repute.  People  did  not 
stop  to  inquire  whether  fortunate  speculations  or  sums  of  money  deposited 
with  him  by  proscribed  Jews  who  died  without  heirs  and  beyond  the  frontiers 
of  France  had  increased  a  hundred-fold  the  modest  savinas  of  the  scribe 
of  the  parish,  St.  Jacques  de  la  Boucherie  ;  the  common  people,  always  ready 
to  believe  in  the  supernatural,  attributed  his  large  fortune  exclusively  to 
alchemy,  and  long  after  his  death  no  citizen  of  Paris  would  have  dared  to 
pass  the  house  of  Flamel  and  Pernelle,  his  wife,  at  night  without  signing 
himself,  so  as  to  keep  off  the  evil  spirits  which  were  believed  to  haunt  the 
abode  in  which  the  alchemist  concealed  his  treasure.  Yet  Flamel,  at  his 
death,  founded  masses  for  the  repose  of  his  soul  in  all  the  churches  of  Parish, 
and  bequeathed  his  goods  to  the  poor. 

The  great  good  fortime  of  Nicholas  Flamel  no  doubt  helped  to  advance 
experimental  science,  but  it  led  thousands  of  enthusiasts  astray,  and  the 
search  for  the  philosopher's  stone  became  the  mania  of  the  fifteenth  century. 
An  ancient  author,  ^\ho  did  not  at  all  favour  the  alchemists,  says  of  them, 


CHEMISTRY  AXD  ALCllEMr. 


197 


"  Bad  coal,   sulphur,   excrement,  poisons,  and   all  kinds  of   hard   work  are 
sweeter  than  honey  to  them,  until,  having  consumed  patrimony,  heritage,  and 


furniture,  all  of  which  disapi)ear  in  smoke  and  ashes,  the  poor  wietches  end 
their  days  in  rags  and  misery." 


CHEMISTRY  AND  ALCHEMl 


Flamel,  who  died  in  1415,  carried  to  the  tomb  the  secret  of  the  great 
work  which  he  declared  that  he  had  in  possession,  and  more  than  a  century 
and  a  half  elajjsed  before  the  doctrine  of  the  Paracelsists  obtained  a  place  in 
the  University  of  Paris.  It  was  only  in  the  reign  of  Henry  IV.  that  Baillif 
de  la  Riviere  and  Joseph  Duchesne,  both  j)hysicians  to  the  King,  and  George 
Penot,  a  pupil,  like  them,  of  the  Bale  school,  succeeded  in  attracting  attention 
to  the  name  and  the  doctrines  of  the  great  Swiss  alchemist. 

This  reaction  in  favour  of  the  chemical  system  of  Paracelsus,  though 
slow  and  undecisive,  was  not  the  less  significant.  The  war  broke  out  afresh 
between  the  eclectic  chemists  and  the  Paracelsists,  and  it  was  amidst  this  conflict 


Pig.  149. — The  Alchemist  Morienus. —After  an  Engraving  by  Vriese. 


of  the  two  schools  that  chimiastrie,  against  which  was  ranged  the  insane 
spiritualism  of  the  Rosicrucians,  those  sectaries  of  mystic  alchemy,  was  able 
to  make  its  way  upon  the  as  yet  vaguely  defined  ground  of  general  chemistry. 
The  two  other  branches  of  the  science,  metallurgy  and  technical  chemistry, 
owing  to  the  nature  of  their  customary  application,  did  not  encounter  so 
many  obstacles,  and  in  course  of  time  were  protected  and  encouraged  by  the 
governments  and  local  administrations.  Venice,  which  had  so  long  been 
hostile  to  the  psychological  chemists,  showed  favour  to  the  practical  and 
workhig  chemists,  and  the  same  was  the  case  in  all  the  cities  and  states 
where  commerce  throve.     The  metallurgists  demonstrated  to  the  public  that 


CHEMISTRV  AXn  ALCHKM)' 


199 


thcv  would  consult  their  interests — ahvaj's  the  main  motive  of  human 
progress — by  allowing  them  to  construct  blast-furnaces,  foundries,  and 
manufactories,  and  in  this  way  they  transformed  in  a  few  years  the  whole 
social  system.  The  savants  devoted  their  attention  to  metallurgic  chemistrj', 
which  did  in  reality  make  gold  in  the  sense  that  it  extracted  mineral  matter 
from  all  kinds  of  metals,  and  submitted  the  metals  themselves  to  all 
the  changes  which  they  underwent  in  manufacture.  In  Germany,  for 
instance,  the  learned  Pole,  Tycho  Brahe,  so  famous  as  an  astronomer,  spent 
nearlj-  his  whole  time  in  a  laboratory  with  the  Emperor  Rudolph  II.,  who 
expended  large  sums  in  scientific  experiments,  but  who  paid  no  heed  to  the 
philosoi^her's  stone.  So,  too,  in  England,  Roger  Bacon,  who  has  deservedly 
been  called  the  father  of  experimental  i)hysics,  did  not  think  it  beneath  him 
to  engage  in  chemical  researches ;  while  in  France  Bernard  Palissy,  whose 
labours  have  already  been  referred  to,  did  much  for  technical  chemistry. 


THE    OCCULT    SCIENCES. 


The  Origin  of  Magic. — The  Savants  and  Philosophers  reputed-  to  be  Magicians. — Different  Forms 
of  Occult  Sciences. — Oiieiromancj'. — Oneirocritics  and  Diviners. — Necronoiancy. — Practices  of 
the  Necromancers. — Astrology. — Celebrated  Astrologers. — Chiromancy.— Aeiomancy  and 
other  kinds  of  Divination. — The  Angelic  Art  and  the  Notorious  Art. — The  Spells  of  the 
Saints. — Magic. — The  Evocation  of  G-ood  and  Evil  Genii. — Pacts  with  Demons. — Celebrated 
Magicians. — FormultE  and  Circles. — -Incense  and  Perfumes. — Talismans  and  Images. — The 
tormenting  of  "Wax  Images. — The  Sagitturii. — The  Evil  Eye. — Magic  Alchemy. — Cabalism. 
— The  Fairies,  Elfs,  and  Spirits. — The  Were-wolve.s. — The  Sabbath. — A  Trial  for  Sorcery. 


]T3^  j;:5^^YEE,Y  illusion  contains  a  principle, 
every  false  science  has  its  history," 
says  M.  Ferdinand  Denis,  in  a  work 
of  which  we  propose  to  give  an  analysis. 
"  To  understand  as  a  whole  the  dif- 
ferent branches  of  occult  philosophy, 
as  it  was  understood  in  the  Middle 
Ages,  it  ia  necessary  to  say  a  few 
words  about  magic  as  practised  by  the 
ancients." 

To  study  this  vast  subject  in  its  primi- 
tive sources,  it  would  be  necessary  to  explain  the  magic  formulte  of  the  Vedas 
m  India,  as  handed  down  to  us  in  the  religion  of  the  Hindoos,  and  to  pene- 
trate the  systems  of  Hebraic  cabalism.  But  we  need  not  go  back  further 
than  Diodorus  of  Sicily,  who  in  the  time  of  Julius  Ca?sar  visited  the  most 
distant  countries  of  Asia  and  Africa,  and  who  tells  us  of  a  Chaldean  tribe 
which  composed  a  sacred  caste,  devoted  exclusively  to  the  study  of  the  occult 
sciences,  and  incessantly  seeking  to  discover,  by  means  of  astrology  and  magic, 
the  secrets  of  the  future.  The  same  historian  tells  us  that  the  Assyrians  had 
their  diviners  and  augurs,  to  watch  the  flight  of  the  birds  and  to  offer  up 
sacrifices  to  the  unknown  gods,   many  centuries   before  these   superstitious 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


practices  had  been  introduced  into  use  amongst  the  Eomans.  Pliuy,  in  his 
turn,  borrowed  from  tradition  a  curious  chapter  upon  magic  in  the  time  of 
Homer ;  and  other  Latin  writers  have  given  us  some  information  as  to  the 
practice  of  magic  amongst  the  Etruscans.  This  is  enough  to  show  that 
ancient  magic,  and  more  especially  Eastern  magic,  was  the  cradle  of  the 
occult  sciences  in  the  Middle  Ao-es 

The  occult  sciences  existed,  moreover,  amongst  the  ancients,  though  they 
were  not  called  by  this  generic  name,  which  comprises  all  the  foi-ms  of  the 
art  of  divination,  notably  Astrology  and  Oneiromancy  ;  all  the  modes  of 
evoking  good  or  evil  spirits,  notably  Theurgy  and  Goety  ;  all  the  material 
and  spiritual  communications  between  the  dead  and  living— that  is  to  say, 
Necromancy;  and  all  the  means  of  exercising  a  supernatural  and  mysterioul 
power  by  the  influence  of  dreams— that  is  to  say,  Sorcery.  But  when  the 
advent  of  Christianity  changed  the  face  of  the  world,  the  first  heresiarchs, 
who  had  only  embrace!  the  new  faith  in  the  hope  of  dragging  it  down  into 
the  chaos  of  pagan  religions,  appear  to  have  been  the  faithful  guardians  of 
the  dogmas  and  precepts  of  ancient  magic :  these  were  the  Gnostics  and  the 
foUowers  of  Valentine,  Harpocrates,  and  Basilides,  who  declared  that  they 
were  the  depositaries  of  the  wisdom  of  the  Eastern  theosophists,  and  who 
disfigured  the  Christian  worship  by  mysteries  either  obscure,  obscene,  or 
ridiculous.  Thus  they  added  to  the  ceremonies  of  the  Greek  Church  a  mass 
of  recent  practices  invented  by  priests  of  Buddha  or  Zoroaster,  and  which 
were  not  devoid  of  grandeur  and  solemnity. 

It  was  at  the  epoch  (the  third  century)  when  Gnosticism,  the  sovereign 
science,  flourished  in  the  school  of  Alexandria,  that  there  appeared  two 
illustrious  philosophers-Plotinus,  born  at  Eycopolis  in  Egypt,  and  his 
disciple  Porphyrus,  born  at  Constantinople-who  in  a  manner"  founded  the 
new  magical  science,  and  who  may  be  looked  upon  as  the  first  demono- 
graphers  of  the  Middle  Ages.  Plotinus,  a  thorough  Platonist,  had  studied 
the  philosophy  of  the  Orientalists  in  Persia  and  India,  before  coming  to  teach 
mysticism  and  pantheism  at  Home.  He  embodied  in  a  work  entitled  the 
"Enneades"— that  is  to  say,  collection  of  nine  books— a  whole  set  of  doctrines 
which  Porijhyrus  completed  and  commentated,  and  which  contains  a  selection 
of  the  marvellous  traditions  of  the  Hucn-d  art  in  the  East.  After  them, 
Jamblichus,  bom  at  Tyre  in  Phanicia,  who  also  had  been  educated  in  the 
school  of  Alexandria,  discovered  a  systematic  formula  for  uniting  theurgy  to 


n  o 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


magic.  Ennapius,  Eustathius,  and  the  Emperor  Julian  himself,  accepted  the 
system  of  Jarablichus,  who,  in  evoking  the  religious  mysteries  of  ancient 
Egypt,  wrote  a  sort  of  gospel  for  the  thaumaturgists  and  the  magicians. 
Jamblichus  may  be  said  to  have  expounded  the  physics  of  the  reign  of 
demons,  and  Proclus  the  metaphysics. 

The  revolution  which  then  took  place  in  the  neo-pagan  philosophy  caused 


A    RAi^  MCT 


jfuyoT. 


Fig.  150. — Dniid  carrying  the  Crescent  of  the  Sixth  Day  of  the  Moon,  and  the  Druid  Sacrificer. 
After  a  Roman  Monument  of  the  Second  Century. 


the  aspirations  and  tendencies  of  the  ardent  and  inquiring  minds,  which,  after 
endeavouring  to  discover  the  secrets  of  creation  and  of  terrestrial  existence, 
sought  outside  of  material  nature  a  source  of  ideal  satisfactions  which  they 
could  not  find  in  the  real  world,  to  converge  upon  the  same  end.  The  eyes  of 
the  mind  were  opened,  and  human  intelligence  became  enamoured  of  the 
occult  sciences  which  brought  it  into  communication  with  the  superior 
intellects  of  the  invisible  world.     Thus,  upon   the  one  hand,   there  was  a 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES.  203 


scientific  movement  resulting  from  the  daring  speculations  of  a  few  savants 
who  endeavoured  to  fathom  the  arcana  of  philosojih}' ;  upon  the  other  hand, 
there  arose  and  extended  amongst  the  ignorant  and  credulous  populations  of 
Europe  an  instinctive  love  for  the  wonderful,  arising  out  of  local  legends,  a 
vague  desire  to  march  towards  the  unkno-mi,  a  fe^xrish  impatience  to  witness 
terrible  evocations  of  spirits,  and  a  criminal  hope  of  obtaining  the  interven- 
tion of  demons,  who  were  credited  with  the  jiosscssion  of  a  terrible  power, 
and  who  became  the  docile  agents  of  a  jjopular  magic  more  active  and 
dangerous  than  that  of  the  philosophers  of  the  Alexandrian  school.  This 
new  magic  had  its  origin  not  only  in  the  superstitions  of  Celtic  races,  but 
also  in  the  sombre  mysteries  of  JVoi'thern  mythologies.  It  was  a  sort  of  dark 
and  savage  religion,  which  the  people  of  the  North  and  certain  Asiatic  hordes 
had  imported  into  Germany  and  Gaid  (Fig.  150),  with  their  barbarous 
worship  and  their  hideous  gods,  scattering  terror  by  their  sangiiinarj'  rites 
and  magic  incantations  amongst  the  primitive  inhabitants  of  these  countries, 
which  were  still  full  of  the  winsome  and  poetical  souvenirs  of  paganism. 
It  has  been  said  with  truth,  of  one  of  the  most  ancient  monuments  of  the 
Scandinavian  language,  called  the  Ilara-maJ,  that  it  contained  the  germ  of 
most  of  the  superstitious  ideas  which,  by  their  admixture  with  the  magic 
theories  of  the  East  and  of  antiquity,  brought  about  the  creation  of  the 
sorcery  of  the  Middle  Ages. 

The  occult  sciences  long  remained  in  the  shade,  and  were  worked  out  in 
silence  far  from  the  supervision  of  the  ecclesiastical  schools,  but  under  the 
influence  of  popular  traditions  which  had  preserved  the  mystic  and  divinatory 
formidse  in  use  amongst  the  Chaldeans,  the  Greeks,  and  the  Eomans,  and 
which  combined  with  the  lugubrious  reminiscences  of  the  Valhalla  of  Odin 
the  graceful  fancies  of  the  bards  of  Brittany.  The  Jliddlc  Ages  employed 
all  the  elements  of  the  sacred  art  and  of  magic  sciences  borrowed  from  many 
different  times  and  lands,  linking  them  with  the  ]Mah<3metan  creeds  which  the 
Arabs  had  imported  into  Spain.  As  early  as  the  eleventh  century  there  were 
Saracen  schools  in  the  Iberian  j^eninsula,  where  the  occult  sciences,  which 
served  to  unveil  the  wonders  of  the  supernatural  world,  were  publicly 
expoimded.  It  was  long  supposed  by  the  dcmonographers  that  the  iUustrioiis 
Gerbert,  bom  at  Aurillac  in  Auvergue,  who  had  completed  his  studies  amongst 
the  Spanish  Arabs  at  the  school  of  Cordova  before  being  elected  pope,  only 
owed  his  election  to  a  mysterious  jjact  which  he  had  made  with  the  demons. 


204 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


It  would  be  superfluous  to  refute  such  a  folly,  but  it  may  be  remarked  that 
two  centuries  later  the  Arabic  was,  so  to  speak,  the  key  and  the  first  instru- 
ment of  study  for  penetrating  the  mysterious  sanctuary  of  hidden  sciences. 

This  was,  perhaps,  what  brought  about  the  secret  introduction  into  the 
Christian,  and  even  into  the  monastic  schools,  of  this  language  which  was  so 
little  diffused  throughout  Europe.  Most  of  the  savants  who  dabbled  in  these 
jnysterious  sciences,  which  were  proscribed  and  condemned  by  the  Church, 
learnt  Arabic  as  well  as  Hebrew  and  Syi'iac,  a  knowledge  of  which  was 
necessary  to  become  initiated  into  the  mysteries  of  cabalism.  This  was  why 
any  one  who  knew  Arabic  or  Hebrew  was  suspected  of  magic,  and  even  of 


Fig.  151. — "How  Alexander  engaged  in  Combat  with  Men  having  Horses'  Heads  and  vomiting 
Smoke  from  their  Mouths."— Miniature  of  a  Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century,  No.  11,040. 
— In  the  Burgundy  Library,  Brussels. 


sorcery.  From  the  time  of  Plotinus  and  Porphyrus  to  that  of  Cardan  and 
Paracelsus,  no  man  of  eminence  could  assist  the  progress  of  science  or  make 
any  great  scientific  discovery  without  being  reputed  a  magician,  or  stigma- 
tized as  a  sorcerer— a  fatal  appellation  which,  attached  to  the  name  of  a  noble 
victim  of  his  love  for  science,  disturbed  his  repose,  often  interrupted  his 
labours,  and  sometimes  put  his  liberty  and  life  in  peril.  Eaymond  Lulli, 
Albertus  Magnus,  Roger  Bacon,  Vincent  of  Beauvais,  and  many  others,  after 
having  composed  a  great  number  of  remarkable  works  upon  scholastic 
philosophy,  could  not  escape  these  unjust  suspicions  and  persecutions.  The 
Florentine  eucycloptedist,  Cecco  d'Ascoli,  whose  cabalistic  studies  had  excited 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES.  205 


the  suspicions  of  the  Inquisition,  was  accused  of  being  in  communication  with 
the  devil,  and  burnt  at  the  stake  in  Rome  in  1327. 

The  occult  sciences  had  spread  very  rapidly  at  the  epoch  when  the  thirst 
for  knowledge  gave  an  impetus  to  all  the  intellectual  forces  of  the  Middle 
Ages.  This  was  the  period  of  the  great  encyclopaedias,  which  were  compiled 
simultaneously  in  all  countries  where  the  Renaissance  of  letters  was  ushered 
in  with  more  enthusiasm  than  discretion.  These  encyclopajdias  comprised, 
amidst  the  vast  mass  of  divine  and  hmnan  sciences,  hermetic  philosophy, 
judicial  astrology,  theurgy,  and  the  other  branches  of  magic  ;  but,  notwith- 
standing this,  the  occult  sciences  were  not  taught  ex  cathodm ;  that  is  to  say, 
from  the  chairs  of  the  Universities,  over  which  the  religious  authorities  always 
exercised  an  unlimited  power  of  control  and  suppression.  The  invention  of 
printing,  in  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  centuiy,  all  at  once  conferred  upon 
teaching  from  books  a  degree  of  liberty  which  oral  instruction  had  never 
possessed.  The  occult  sciences  profited  thereby,  and,  without  taking  into 
account  the  prohibitions  and  condemnations  of  the  Church,  printing  brought 
mto  full  light  the  doctrines  and  experimental  knowledge  belonging  to  each 
kind  of  magic,  which  had  hitherto  remained  hidden.  In  most  cases  these 
publications  did  not  render  the  authors  or  printers  liable  to  any  danger,  for 
the  Catholic  Church  was  at  this  period  more  engaged  in  pulling  down  the 
militant  heresies  which  attacked  the  dogma  and  the  very  essence  of  religion. 
Cardan,  Paracelsus,  Cornelius  Agrippa,  Jean  Reuchlin,  and  many  other  psycho- 
logists, though  they  were  more  or  less  astrologers,  dcmonologists,  and  magi- 
cians, were  not  interfered  with  for  their  writings,  which,  going  throuo-h  several 
editions,  were  very  widely  circulated  ;  but  in  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth 
centuiy,  certain  inquisitors,  amongst  others  Henry  Institor  and  Springer  in 
their  "  Malleus  Maleficorum,"  denounced  the  fonnidable  invasion  of  soi-cery, 
and  invoked  against  its  adepts  the  penal  laws  decreed  by  the  ecclesiastical 
authorities.  It  was  only  about  the  middle  of  this  century  that  the  civil 
power  began  to  proceed  against  the  sorcerers  ;  and  it  was  encouraged,  seconded, 
and  urged  by  the  jurisconsults,  who  seemed  fully  agreed  to  punish  the  insti- 
gators and  proselytes  of  an  illusory  science,  reputed  criminal  because  it 
participated  in  the  w(jiks  oi  the  demons.  One  of  these  stern  magistrates, 
Pierre  de  Lancre,  I'rcsident  of  the  P.ordeaux  Parliament,  boasted  in  his 
"Treatise  on  the  Inconstancy  of  Evil  Spirits  and  Demons"  (KilO),  1 
he  had  been  more  severe  on  the  sorcerers  than  the  Inquisition  itself ;  and  h 


liat 
is 


2o6  THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


contemporary,  the  political  philosoplier  Jean  Bodin,  calmly  enumerated  in 
his  "  Demonomania  "  (1580)  the  list  of  persons  who  had  been  handed  over  to 
the  secidar  aim  as  demonomaniacs  or  sorcerers  during  the  reign  of  the 
Valois  kino-s.  The  magic  art  was  destined  to  disappear  and  vanish  in  smoke 
when,  to  use  the  picturesque  expression  of  Vico,  "  Curiositj^,  the  mother  of 
Ignorance,  gave  birth  to  true  Science." 

We  may  now  examine  in  succession  the  principal  theoretical  and  practical 
divisions  of  occult  philosophy. 

Oneirocrici/  (that  is  to  saj^,  the  explanation  of  dreams,  from  the  two  Greek 
words,  oi/fipos,  a  dream,  and  Kpta-i5,  judgment),  or  Oneiromancy  (the  divining  of 
dreams,  from  the  two  Greek  words,  ovtipos,  a  dream,  and  jxavreia,  prediction) 
is  of  very  ancient  origin.  The  Egyptians,  the  Jews,  and  the  Greeks  had 
reduced  the  art  of  interpreting  dreams  into  a  regular  doctrine.  The  mystic 
traditions  of  this  art,  which  was  implanted  in  all  the  pagan  religions,  were  all 
the  more  readily  revived  in  the  Middle  Ages,  because  the  Holy  Scriptures 
supplied  many  instances  of  prophetic  dreams,  explained  and  afterwards 
fidiilled,  which  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  naturally  accepted  as  indisputable 
facts  in  the  history  of  the  people  of  God.  The  explanation  of  dreams  did 
not  seem  contrary  to  the  Catholic  faith,  inasmiich  as  Synesius,  who  was 
Bishop  of  Ptolemais  in  the  fourth  centu.ry,  composed  a  treatise  upon  Dreams, 
in  which  he  endeavoured  to  sanctify  by  Christian  reflections  the  belief  of  the 
ancients,  by  making  of  oneirocricy  a  science  of  individual  observation,  which 
enabled  distinctions  to  be  made  between  natural  dreams,  Divine  dreams,  and 
dreams  caused  by  the  evil  one.  This  triple  distinction  of  the  nature  of 
dreams  was  admitted  as  a  fundamental  rule  in  the  oneirocricy  of  the  Middle 
Ages.  However,  another  father  of  the  Church,  Gregory,  Bishop  of  Nyssa, 
who  possessed  a  surer  judgment  than  his  contemporary  Sjmesius,  refused  to 
see  in  dreams  more  than  a  momentary  derangement  of  the  mind,  caused  by 
the  recent  emotions  which  it  might  have  experienced.  He  poeticall}'  com- 
pared the  brain  of  man  during  sleep  to  the  string  of  a  harp,  which,  after 
emitting  its  sound,  still  vibrates  after  the  sound  has  died  away. 

Great  as  were  the  repugnances  of  the  Church  to  the  systematic  interpre- 
tation of  dreams,  the  oneiroscopists  by  profession — those  who  made  of  this 
interpretation,  which  had  been  condenxaed  bj^  the  popes  and  the  councils,  a 
sacred  or  diabolic  art — exercised  their  mischievous  trade  with  imjjunity  in  the 
palaces  of  kings  as  well  as  in  the  towns  and  in  the  country.      They  had 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


Z07 


notliing  to  fear  from  the  civil  autliorities,  and  they  defied  those  of  the 
Church.  However,  Pope  Gregory  II.,  in  the  eighth  centurj^  denounced  as 
ddestabh'  the  joractice  of  divination  which  consisted  in  seeking  auguries  in  the 
visions  of  the  night.  The  sixth  Council  of  Paris,  held  in  8"29,  condemned  the 
art  of  oneiromancy,  as  entailing  pernicious  consequences,  and  assimilated  it 
with  the  darkest  superstitions  of  paganism.  These  canonical  condemnations 
did  not  prevent  the  art  of  divining  by  dreams  from  being  generally  practised 
in  the  Middle  Ages,  either  for  forecasting  the  future  or  for  discovering 
hidden  treasure.  The  first  special  treatise  on  this  subject  was  written  by 
Arnauld  de  Villencuve  in  the  thirteenth  century,  and  was  not  very  widely 


Fig.  152. — "  How  Alexander  engaged  in  Combat  with  Pigs  having  large  teeth  a  cubit  long,  and 
with  Men  and  Women  having  Six  Hands." — Miniature  of  a  Manuscript  of  the  Thirteenth 
Century,  No.  11,040. — In  the  Burgundy  Library,  Brussels. 


circulated,  for  the  adepts  in  oneiromancy  did  not  care  t(j  spread  al)road  the 
technical  elements  of  an  art  \\hich  they  practised  as  a  means  of  making 
money.  It  was  not  until  the  sixteenlli  century  that  this  process  of  divination 
became  general  and  popular,  when  the  Venice  printing-press  had  published 
the  "  Oneirocriticon,"  written  in  Greek,  and  ascribed  to  a  pliilosopher  of 
Ephesus  called  Artemidoiiis,  wlio  is  said  to  have  cumposed  it  in  the  reign  of 
the  Emperor  Antoninus.  This  book,  translated  into  several  languages,  and 
reprinted  nuniy  times,  became  tlie  man\ial  and  code  of  the  oneiiomaneeis, 
though  his  system   did   not    T'c])ose  ii])oii   iiny  scientific  or  rational    basis.      lor 


instance,  accoi'ding  to  tliis  systein,  wliocvci'  drca 


ml     that    Ills   hai 


ir  was   thick 


208 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


and  carefully  curled  might  anticiiDate  an  accession  of  wealth ;  upon  the  other 
hand,  anything  wrong  with  the  hair  foreshadowed  something  unfavourable. 
It  was  a  bad  sign  to  wear  a  wreath  of  flowers  not  in  season.  In  this  theory 
of  dreams — borrowed,  no  doubt,  from  the  East — "  the  ej'es  relate  to  children, 
as  the  head  does  to  the  father  of  the  family,  the  arms  to  the  brothers,  the 
feet  to  the  servants  ;  the  right  hand  to  the  mother,  to  the  sons,  and  to 
friends ;  the  left  hand  to  the  wife  and  the  daughter."  The  learned  Jerome 
Cardan,  who  did  not  choose  to  accept  these  vague  and  incoherent  indications, 
attempted  to  establish  new  laws  of  oneirocricy,  and  arranged  the  dreams  in 


Fig.  153.— The  Vision  of  Charlemagne.— After  a  Miniature  in  the  "  Chroniques  de  Saint-Denis.'' 
Mimuscript  of  the  Fourteenth  Century.— In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


categories  corresponding  with  the  seasons,  the  months,  and  the  hours  during 
which  they  occurred.  But  the  common  people,  little  doubting  that  he  was 
unconsciously  reproducing  the  simpler  but  more  logical  system  of  Pliny  in 
his  "  Natural  History,"  merely  explained  the  dreams  by  taking  them  in  their 
opposite  sense,  and  this  was  the  foundation  of  a  small  popular  work,  which 
has  been  frequently  revised  and  renewed  since  the  sixteenth  century,  "  The 
Key  to  Dreams." 

Oneirocricy  might  have  been  to  a  certain  extent  harmless,  in  spite  of  its 
superstitious  absurdities ;  but  such  was  not  the  case  with  necromancy  (derived 
from    the    two    Greek   words    v^K-po'g,  death,   and   it.avTua.,  divination,   or  the 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


209 


art  of  foretelling  the  future  by  evoking  the  dead),  a  terrible  and  imao-inary 
science  which    had  earned  for    its  adepts  the  name  of    ma-omam:cn.     This 


■cig.  154 — The  Image  of  Dame  Astrology,  with  the  Three  Fates. — After  a  Miniature  in  the  "  'Yr.M: 
de  la  Cabale  Chrclienne,"  in  Prose,  by  Jean  Thenaud,  a  Cordelier  of  Angnnlcmo,  a  Wurk 
dedicated  to  Franr;oiB  I.— llanusci ipt  of  the  Sixteenth  Century.  —In  the  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


science   was   all    tlie    more   believed    in   during    the    Middle   Ages   because   it 
appeared,  in  the  eyes  of  a  supeiticial  observer,  to  be  based  upon  the  authority 

E  li 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


of  Scripture,  through  the  Witch  of  Endor  whom  Saul  asked  to  evoke  the 
spirit  of  Samuel.  The  practices  of  this  art  were  not  in  all  cases  of  a  solemn 
and  striking  character ;  for  the  evocation  of  the  dead  consisted  sometimes  in 
merely  pronouncing  certain  phrases,  half  grotesque  and  unintelligible,  at 
night,  either  in  a  cemetery  or  a  cellar,  by  the  light  of  a  black  taper.  In  other 
cases,  it  is  true,  this  evocation  was  surrounded  by  the  most  horrible  mysteries, 
and  the  necromancer  accompanied  them  by  the  effusion  of  blood.  A  child 
was  put  to  death,  and  its  head,  placed  upon  a  dish,  surrounded  by  lighted 
tapers,  was  sujiposed  to  open  its  mouth  at  a  given  moment,  and  speak  as  from 
the  tomb.  Sometimes  the  necromancer  merely  summoned  up  a  mute  phantom, 
which  by  a  gesture  or  a  look  replied  to  the  question  put  to  it.  It  was  in 
this  way  that  Albertus  Grotus,  at  the  request  of  the  Emperor  Frederick 
Barbarossa,  evoked  the  spirit  of  his  wife,  who  appeared  before  him,  gloomy 
and  sorrowful,  but  still  recognisable,  and  wearing  her  imperial  robes.  Necro- 
mancy, which  must  have  had  its  origin  in  the  hjqDogea  of  ancient  Egy^Dt, 
and  which  has  furnished  so  many  terrible  stories  to  the  credulity  of  the 
Middle  Ages,  eventually  became  fused  in  sorcery. 

Another  branch  of  the  art  of  divination,  which  flourished  in  Europe  from 
the  beginning  of  the  Middle  Ages  to  the  sixteenth  century,  was  astrology,  that 
mysterious  science  which  was  intimately  connected  with  astronomy,  and  which 
addressed  itself  to  the  eyes  as  well  as  to  the  mind,  so  that  the  masters  of 
science  consulted  the  celestial  vault  as  they  would  an  immense  book,  in  which 
each  star,  having  received  the  name  and  meaning-  of  one  of  the  letters  in 
the  Hebrew  alphabet,  recorded  in  indelible  characters  the  destiny  of  empires 
and  sovereigns  as  well  as  that  of  the  whole  human  race,  which  was  supposed 
to  be  subject,  each  man  at  his  birth,  to  the  influence  of  the  planets  (Fig. 
154).  Astrology  was  the  oldest  of  the  occult  sciences,  for  it  came  from 
Chuldea,  and  was  rocked,  according  to  the  Hebrew  works,  in  the  cradle  of  the 
world.  The  Jewish  nation,  which  was  the  natural  heiress  of  this  primitive 
science,  piously  preserved  the  deposit  conflded  to  its  doctors.  One  of  them, 
Suneon  Ben-Jochai,  to  whom  is  ascribed  the  celebrated  book  of  the  "  Zohar," 
succeeded,  according  to  the  tradition  of  the  Talmud,  in  attaining  to  such  a 
degree  of  familiarity  with  the  celestial  mysteries  relating  to  the  position  of 
the  stars,  that  he  was  able  to  read  the  laws  of  Jehovah  in  the  sky  before  they 
N\-ei'e  imposed  upon  the  earth  by  their  Di^^ne  Author.  It  is  easy  fo  under- 
stand that  under  the  empire  of  such  ideas,  higher  inteUects,  deeply  interested 


HE  SIBYL  OF  TIBURTIS  ANNOUNCING  TO  AdGUSTUS  TFIK  COMlAU  Oh  JLSUS-CiiRiS 

Miniature  from  the  llisiorin  n.itiina  cxcr/jl'i  r.r  lU.rk  i'nuli  iixnii:  Iiali.in  .M.S.  /-x.^cule.l  la  tl-  xvi""  (-eniiirv  mv\ 
attriljutoil  to  Giulio  Cluvio;  ii"  71  H.  h.  Arsfinal  Lllirary,  I'aris. 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


in  astronomical  science,  must  have  nioditied  at  their  will  the  science  of  which 
they  were  the  boldest  interpreters.  Hence,  no  douht,  arose  the  fondness  of 
the  Jews  for  astronomy,  which  they  resorted  to  principally  for  drawinj^- 
hoi'oscopes  and  predicting  the  future.  This  was  why  the  Jewish  astrologers 
were  in  such  good  odour  during  the  ISIiddle  Ages.  They  were  admitted 
into  the  presence  of  kings  and  princes,  who  loaded  them  with  honours  and 
riches,  while  the  Israelitish  race  generally  was  being  treated  with  such  great 
contumely. 

The  famous  Arab  geograjiher  Edrisi,  who  was  the  favourite  of  Roger  II., 
King  of  Sicily,  at  the  close  of  the  eleventh  century,  owed  rather  to  astrology 
than  to  geography  the  favour  in  which  he  was  held  by  that  prince,  and  it  has 
been  asserted  that  the  two  circular  tables  of  silver  which  he  engraved  with 
great  skill  for  the  King  were  not  meant  for  a  terrestrial  globe,  but  for  a 
celestial  sphere  which  reproduced  the  motions  of  the  stars  and  their 
conjunctions  from  an  astrological  point  of  view.  It  is  well  known  how 
eagerly,  in  the  thirteenth  century,  Alfonso  X.,  King  of  Castile,  surnamed  the 
Learned,  took  counsel  with  the  rabbis  in  his  investigations  of  astronomy  and 
astrology.  Two  centuries  later,  John  II.,  King  of  Portugal,  whom  Queen 
Isabella  of  Castile  called  the  man  par  excellence,  had  in  his  suite  a  Jew,  Master 
Rorigo,  who  perfected  the  astrolabe  (Jacob's  staff),  and  who,  doubtless,  took 
part  in  the  jilans  for  the  great  maritime  expeditions  to  the  East  Indies  which 
his  Roj'al  Highness  dispatched  at  about  the  same  time  as  ChristupliiT 
Columbus,  by  the  aid  of  his  own  knowledge  of  astronomy,  discovered  the 
fourth  quarter  of  the  world. 

The  history  of  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries  records  the  doing  of  a 
great  number  of  astrologers,  who  were  as  famous  during  their  lifetime  as 
they  are  now  unknown,  though  they  composed  many  curious  and  some 
remarkable  books.  Without  recalling  the  numerous  compilers  of  almanacs 
and  predictions  who  lived  during  the  sixteenth  century,  but  amongst  whom 
may  be  mentioned  Francois  Rabelais,  who  had  but  little  faith  in  astrology, 
we  may  cite  the  names  of  Luke  Gauric,  the  learned  Neapolitan  prelate  (born 
m  1476),  who  drew  the  horoscojie  of  the  cities,  popes,  and  kings  of  his  day ; 
Simon  Phares,  the  astrologer-in-ordinary  to  King  Charles  VIIL,  a  converted 
Jew,  who  has  left  a  manuscript  history  of  the  most  famous  astrologers ; 
Thiebault,  the  physician-in-ordinary  and  astrologer  to  Francois  I. ;  Cosmo 
Ruggieri,  the  Florentine  astrologer,  the  confidant  of  Catherine  de'  Medicis ; 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


and  the  most  famous  of  them  all,  Michel  de  Nostredame,  otherwise 
Nostradamus,  physician-in-ordiniary  and  astrologer  to  Charles  IX.,  who  was 
born  at  Salon,  in  France,  in  1503,  and  who  died  there  in  1566.  He  is  the 
only  astrologer  whose  name  has  remained  popular,  and  this  through  his 
"  collection  of  perpetual  predictions,"  compiled  in  enigmatic  verses,  and 
published  under  the  title  of  "  Qiiatrains  Astronomiques,"  and  which  have 
been  reprinted  several  times  under  the  title  of  "Propheties." 

Judicial  astrology,  so  called  to  distinguish  it  from  alchemical  astrology 
and  magical  astrology,  had  no  fixed  rules  until  the  thirteenth  century ;  it 
had  long  followed  in  the  wake  of  astronomy  piroperly  so  called,  but  from  this 
time  it  started  upon  a  path  of  its  own,  and  adopted  many  imaginary  theories, 
repeatedly  borrowing  from  the  occult  sciences  certain  mysterious  and  fanciful 
procedures. 

According  to  the  pure  theory  of  the  art,  the  seven  planets  then  discovered, 
including  the  sun,  formed,  with  the  twelve  figures  of  the  zodiac,  the  totality 
of  the  astrological  system.  Each  of  these  stars  or  constellations  was  supposed 
to  govern,  by  its  special  influence,  either  a  limb  of  the  human  body,  or  the 
whole  body,  or  a  whole  nation,  and  this  bounden  relation  of  the  celestial 
bodies  to  earthly  things  extended  to  all  the  beings  and  all  the  products  ia 
creation.  "  The  flowers  are  to  the  earth  as  the  stars  to  the  sky,"  the  pseudo- 
Trismegistus  is  made  to  say  in  the  old  French  translation  ;  "  there  is  not  one 
flower  amongst  them  which  some  star  has  not  bidden  to  grow."  Albertus 
Magnus,  or  rather  the  anonymous  author  of  the  book  of  "  Wonderful  Secrets  " 
published  with  his  name  to  it,  tells  us  that  the  planet  of  Saturn  presides  over 
life,  sciences,  and  buildings ;  that  wishes,  honours,  riches,  and  the  cleanliness  of 
the  garments  are  dependent  upon  Jupiter ;  that  Mars  exercises  his  influence 
over  wars,  persons,  marriages,  and  feuds ;  that  hope,  happiness,  and  gain 
came  from  the  Sun ;  that  love  and  friendship  are  under  the  influence  of 
Venus ;  that  disease,  debts,  and  fear  are  beneath  the  influence  of  Mercury, 
who  is  also  the  planet  of  commerce  ;  while  the  Moon  causes  wounds,  robberies, 
and  dreams. 

As  to  the  intrinsic  qualities  of  the  planetary  influences,  they  were 
denoted  by  the  planets  themselves.  The  Sun  was  favourable ;  Saturn,  cold 
and  cheerless  ;  Jupiter,  tenrperate  ;  Mars  ardent ;  Venus,  fruitful ;  Mercury, 
inconstant ;  the  Moon,  melancholy.  The  days,  the  colours,  and  the  metals 
were  also  subject  to  the  influence  of  the  planets  and  of  the  constellations. 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


213 


But,  to  draw  anj^  kind  of  horoscope,  the  first  step  was  to  observe  with  great 
care  what  planets  or  constellations  were  dominant  in  the  sky  at  the  precise 
hour  when  the  operation  began.  The  next  step  was  to  examine,  with  the 
guidance  of  very  complicated  calculations,  the  consequences  to  be  deduced 
from  the  positions  and  conjunctions  of  the  stars  (Fig.  15.5).  The  most 
difficult  part  of  the  science  consisted  in  detei-mining  the  homca  of  the  Siois  and 
their  respective  properties.  The  day  was  di\'ided  into  four  equal  parts :  the 
ascendant  of  the  sun,  the  middle  of  the  sk_y,  the  descending  of  the  sun,  and 
the  lower  part  of  the  sky.  "  These  four  parts  of  the  day  were  subdivided 
into  twelve  distinct  parts,  which  were  called  the  f>rp/re  homes.  Great 
importance  was  therefore  attached,  in  drawing  a  horoscope,  to  ascertaining  in 


\iis  i-fl 


y       ■»  i''  8       \ 

D.H.M. 

I7    21  21  P.   M.' 

Fig.  15.5.— Specimen  of  a  Genethliac,  or  Astrological  Horoscope,  composed  in  the  Sixteenth 

Century. 


which  hoHHp  the  stars  ajtipeared,  especially  as  these  houses  of  the  sun  varied 
astronomically,  according  to  the  covmtries,  the  time  of  year,  and  the  hour  of 
the  day  or  night.  This  is  why  two  horoscopes,  drawn  by  two  different 
astrologers  at  different  places,  but  at  the  same  moment,  would  be  utterly 
opposed  to  one  another.  But  these  facts  were  not  taken  into  account,  and  the 
errors  and  inconsistencies  which  were  always  occurring  were  imputed  to  the 
astrologers,  and  not  to  astrology,  which  was  never  susjiectcd  until,  disen- 
cumbered of  all  these  superstitious  follies,  it  entered  the  domain  of  the  exact 
sciences  through  its  fusion  with  astronomy. 

If  men  sought  to  interpret  the  future  by  means  of  the  sky.  just  as  they 
tad  sought  to  forecast  their  individual  destinv  bv  means  of  their  own  dreams, 


214  THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


it  is  not  surprisiag  that  they  should  have  intei-rogated  their  own  bodies 
with  a  like  expectation.  From  the  earliest  times  the  peoples  of  the  East 
had  believed  that  the  broken  and  multiple  lines  which  radiate  from  the 
sutures  of  the  skull  are,  in  fact,  the  strokes  of  a  mj-sterious  handwriting 
which  contained  the  secret  of  each  man's  individual  fate. 

The  Middle  Ages  were  therefore  quite  prepared  to  recognise  a  symbolical 
writing  of  a  similar  kind  in  the  countless  lines,  more  or  less  distinct,  which 
correspond  with  the  inflections  of  the  skin  of-  our  hand.  This  speculative 
science,  called  chiromancy  (from  the  Greek  words  x^'-P^  iand,  and  jjiavrua, 
divination),  had  more  adepts  than  all  the  other  sciences  of  divination,  and 
was  eventually  merged  in  astrology,  giving  rise  to  a  number  of  systems 
which  have  been  upheld  by  savants  of  unquestionable  merit. 

The  chiromancers  cunningly  founded  their  doctrine  upon  the  following 
passage  in  the  Exodus,  which  is  repeated  almost  word  for  word  in  the 
Book  of  Job: — "This  shall  be  as  a  sign  in  his  hand,  and  as  an  instru- 
ment before  his  eyes"  (xiii.  9).  But  the  Chui-ch  would  not  admit  of 
this  futile  interpretation  of  the  holy  text,  and  chiromancy  was  one  of  the 
superstitions  which  she  most  uncompromisingly  opposed.  It  was  not, 
however,  until  the  beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century  that  this  superstition 
spread  from  the  East  into  Europe.  At  this  epoch,  the  Bohemians,  who  had 
arrived  from  the  remote  regions  of  Asia  (see  the  volume  on  "  ilanners  and 
Customs,"  chapter  on  Bohemians),  brought  -n-ith  them  the  ancient  traditions 
of  chiromancy,  and  propagated  them  rapidly  in  all  countries  which  they 
traversed.  Inquiring  minds  set  themselves  to  study  this  new  science  of 
divination  as  soon  as  it  made  its  appearance.  Some  of  them  reproduced,  in 
special  treatises  with  designs  and  illustrations  appended,  the  tj-pes  of  hands 
scored  with  lines  or  signs  favoiu'able  or  the  reverse ;  others  investigated  the 
direct  relation  between  the  various  parts  of  the  human  hand  and  the  celestial 
constellations.  Both  had  discovered  and  defined  various  tj^es  of  hands: 
Rimiphilius  declared  there  were  six  types,  Compotus  eight,  and  Indaginus 
thirty-seven,  while  Corvaus  placed  the  number  of  different  types  at  a 
huadred  and  fifty ;  but  Jean  Belot,  the  cure  of  Milmonts,  afterwards  reduced 
the  total  to  four.  There  was  a  long  discussion  as  to  whether  the  right  or  the 
left  hand  was  the  one  from  which  the  horoscope  should  be  di-awn.  There 
was  an  equal  difference  of  opinion  as  to  the  meaning  of  the  lines  and 
irregularities  of  the  hand,  though  it  had  been  subjected  to  the  astrological 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


2IS 


divisions  and  subdivisions  into  which  entered  the  virtues  and  influences  of 
the  planets  (Fig  156).  Even  the  colour  of  the  nails  and  the  white  spots 
which  are  often  seen  upon  them  were  assigned  a  special  meaning  by  the 
exponents  of  chiromancy,  which  tlius  became  a  very  comjalicated  and  ahnost 
a  mathematical  science. 

In  addition  to  chiromancy,  the  Middle  Ages  witnessed  the  adoption  of 
several  modes  of  divination  in  use  amongst  the  ancients,  and  of  the  revival, 
in  a  new  shape,  of  others  which  were  referred  to  in  the  books  of  Greek  and 
Roman  antiquity.  As  in  ancient  times,  there  was  Aeromanc}'  (the  art  of  divin- 
ing by  the  phenomena  of  the  air),  Hydromancy,  I'3'romancy,  and  Geomancy 


Fig.  156. — Specimen  of  the  Left  Hand,  with  the  Lines  and  their  Horoscopic  Denominations. 


(divining  by  means  of  water,  fire,  and  earth).  History  has  often  alluded  to  the 
fantastic  images  which  the  credulity  of  our  ancestors  fancied  tliey  could  see 
m  the  heavens  when  a  meteor  or  the  northern  light  was  visible  (Figs.  157 
to  160).  These  were  looked  upon  as  sinister  or  favourable  presages, 
according  to  their  character.  Tliey  also  used  pitchers  filled  with  water,  into 
which  were  plunged  metallic  blades  marked  with  certain  tokens,  and  whicli, 
as  the  water  boiled,  emitted  sounds  that  the  operator  comprehended  and 
explained  to  his  listeners.  Dactyloinancy  (from  (he  Greek  word  8('.kt-iXos, 
linger)  was  practised  by  means  of  u  ling,  in  many  cases  made  inidii-  the 
influence  of  a   certain    coiiHtellation.     Tliis   ling  was   susijended  by  a  llircad 


2,6  THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


in  the  centre  of  an  earthenware  or  metal  pitcher,  against  the  sides  of  which, 
swino'ing  to  and  fro,  it  struck,  emitting  a  number  of  sounds  which  were 
taken  to  be  predictions  and  oracles.  Pyromancy,  or  the  art  of  divination  by 
fire,  varied  according  to  the  substances  consumed,  the  smoke  of  which 
announced,  by  its  density  and  colour,  what  was  to  be  expected  of  the  future. 
Thus,  when  a  donkey's  head  was  roasted  iipon  live  coal,  the  rotary  move- 
ment of  the  fetid  vapours  emanating  from  it  had  a  prophetic  signification. 
Geomancy,  which  served  to  establish  a  correspondence  between  material 
beings  and  the  elementary  spirits,  was  connected  with  the  sternest  combina- 
tions of  cabalism. 

Other  processes,  which  seemed  to  have  a  religious  character,  but  which 
the  Church  none  the  less  condemned  as  dangerous  superstitions,  were  also 
resorted  to  in  the  Middle  Ages  in  order  to  forecast  the  future.  The  Angelic 
Art,  which  consisted  in  an  invocation  of  the  "uardian  angel,  and  the 
Notorious  Art,  which  addressed  itself  directly  to  God,  in  order  to  obtaia 
immediate  information  as  to  the  future,  did  not  consist  of  a  body  of 
doctrines,  but  merely  of  a  few  prayers  and  secret  ceremonies,  by  virtue  of 
which  the  operator  believed  that  he  could  obtain  the  Divine  Presence.  To 
St.  Jerome  was  actually  attributed  the  authorship  of  two  books  in  which  were 
indicated  the  practices  of  the  Notorious  Art  and  of  the  Angelic  Art.  Other 
prophetic  books,  to  which  a  not  less  marked  importance  was  attributed,  became 
popular,  so  generally  were  they  read,  towards  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century. 
One,  entitled  "Enchiridion  Leonis  Papas"  ("The  Manual  of  Pope  Leo"),  the 
other,  "  Mirabilis  Liber,"  attributed  to  St.  Csesarius,  contained  nothing  to 
justify  these  singidar  pretensions.  Moreover,  to  obtain  what  were  called  the 
sjwUs  of  the  saintH,  a  text  was  taken  from  the  Holy  Scriptures  and  printed  in  the 
frontispiece  of  the  book.  Gregory  of  Tours,  in  his  "History  of  the  Franks," 
relates  that  he  himself  practised  this  kind  of  divination.  In  577,  Merovee, 
son  of  Chilp(5ric,  having  taken  refuge  within  the  basilica  of  St.  Martin  at 
Tours,  to  escape  the  pursuit  of  his  father  and  the  vengeance  of  his  step- 
mother, Fredegonde,  entreated  the  holy  bishop  to  tell  him  what  he  had 
to  hope  or  to  apprehend.  The  Bishop  opened  the  Book  of  Solomon,  and  read 
this  verse :  "Let  the  eye  which  looks  at  its  father  be  pecked  out  by  the 
crow."  This  was  a  sinister  omen.  Merovee  did  not  understand  it,  and 
was  anxious  to  interrogate  for  himself  the  sjielk  of  the  saints.  He  placed 
upon    the   tomb   of   St.    Martin   the  Books    of   Psalms,    of   Kings,  and  the 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


217 


Gosijcls,  and  jiassed  the  niglit  iqjon  liis  knees  before  the  tomb.     After  three 
days  of  fasting  and  j)rayer,  he  opened  the  holy  books,  and  lighted  onlj'  upon 


Figa.  157  to  100. — Fautaslic  Foim.s  ;ind  Fifjurea  seen  in  thu  Sky  in  the  .Si.'ctouriUi  Century. 
Fac-siniile  of  Ancient  Designs. 

passages  whieh  foreboded  evil.      lie  left  the  basilica  in   despair,  and  soon 
afterwards  iierished  miserably. 

The  origin  of  magic  had   been   religious   feivour   carried   to  excess,    for 


21 8  THE  OCCULT  SCIEXCES. 


Kino-  Solomon  was  always  looked  upon  by  tlie  adepts  as  tlie  greatest  of 
mao-icians.  Hence  came  the  name  of  Theurgy  (from  ©tds,  God),  which, 
however,  was  in  many  cases  much  the  same  as  Goety  (ydiys,  enchanter),  this 
latter  ha^-ing  for  its  object  the  invocation  of  invisible  powers,  amongst  them 
being  several  evil  genii  (Figs.  161  and  162).  Henry  Cornelius  Agrippa, 
magician  as  he  was,  or  believed  himself  to  be,  defined  the  principle  of 
theurgy  as  follows : — "  Our  soul,  purified  and  made  divine,  inflamed  by  the 
love  of  God,  ennobled  by  hope,  guided  by  faith,  raised  to  the  summit  of 
human  inteUigence,  attracts  to  itself  the  truth ;  and  in  Divine  truth,  in  the 
mirror  of  eternity,  it  beholds  the  condition  of  things  natural,  supernatural, 
and  heavenly,  their  essence,  their  causes,  and  the  plenitude  of  sciences, 
understanding  them  all  in  an  instant.  Thus,  when  we  are  in  this  state  of 
purity  and  elevation,  we  know  the  things  which  are  above  nature,  and  we 
understand  everything  that  appertains  to  this  lower  world  ;  we  know  not 
only  things  present  and  past,  but  we  also  receive  continually  the  oracles  of 
what  '\\"ill  happen  in  the  near  and  in  the  far  futui'e.  This  is  how  men 
devoted  to  God,  and  who  practise  the  thi'ee  theological  vii'tues,  are  masters 
of  the  elements,  ward  off  tempests,  raise  the  winds,  cause  the  clouds  to  drop 
rain,  heal  the  sick,  raise  up  the  dead."  So,  according  to  this  Prince  of 
Magicians,  as  Cornelius  Agrippa  was  sumamed,  a  magician  ought,  above  all 
things,  to  have  an  ardent  and  unswerving  belief  in  the  assistance  of  God, 
in  whose  name  he  exercised  his  celestial  or  infernal  art. 

Jesus  Christ  has  said,  "  Have  faith,  and  ye  shall  remove  mountains." 
But  magic  was  much  earlier  than  the  Christian  era,  for  it  is  said  to  have 
originated  with  the  magi  of  Chaldea,  and  to  have  received  the  name  from 
them.  The  deraonographers  of  the  sixteenth  century  asserted  that  magic 
had  never  had  any  other  object  than  the  invocation  of  demons,  and  they 
ascribed  the  origin  of  it  to  Mercury  or  to  Zabulon,  who  is  supposed  to  be 
no  other  than  Satan  himself.  This  sinister  science  was  said  to  have  been 
incidcated  and  propagated  during  the  life  of  Christ  by  one  Bamabe  Cypriot, 
who  asserted  that  he  di-ew  his  doctrines  from  books  of  magic,  the  authorship  of 
which  he  ascribed  to  Adam,  Abel,  Enoch,  and  Abraham.  These  wonderful  books, 
which  the  angel  Eaziel,  the  counsellor  of  Adam,  and  the  angel  Raphael, 
the  guide  of  Tobias,  had  communicated  to  men,  were  said  to  be  in  existence 
in  Abyssinia,  in  the  monastery  of  the  Holy  Cross,  which  was  founded 
by  Queen  Sheba  on  her  return  from  the  ^-isit  which  she  paid  to  Solomon. 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


219 


It  must  not  be  supposed  that  the  number  of  adepts  to  magic  has  ever 
been  very  great ;  the  majority  were  never  more  tbau  mere  theorists ;  that 
is  to  say,  purely  specidative  savants,  who  studied  in  books  the  mysterious 
theory  of  the  art  of  magic.  Those  who  asserted  that  they  put  the  art  of 
magic  into  practice  alone  merited  the  name  of  magicians.     But  the  common 


Fig.  161. — The  TiintC!  of  Darkness. — After  a  Miniiiture  of  the  "  Holy  Grail."  —Manuscript  of 
the  Fifteenth  Century. — National  Librai-y,  Paris. 


people,  always  ready  to  discover  the  marvellous  side  of  nahiial  things 
(Fig.  162),  and  to  place  credence  in  the  most  mendaciotis  illusions,  invariably 
accused  of  magic  the  eminent  men  who  had  illustrated  them.selves  by  greats 
scientific  discoveries.  Moreover,  any  alchemist  who  was  supposed  to  be  in 
posscBsion   of    the  great   work   was    looked    upon   as   a   magician.     Thus  the 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


famous  Arab  alchemist  Geber,  to  whom  tlic  hermetic  philosophers  assigned 
the  title  of  King,  was  believed  to  have  obtained  by  magic  the  power  of 
creating  gold ;  and  his  numerous  works  upon  occult  philosophy,  translated 
into  Latin,  are  said  to  have  been  studied  by  the  monk  Gerbert,  who  became 
pope,  with  the  title  of  Sylvester  IL,  in  999.  Gerbert  was  a  man  of  vast 
general  learning  and  a  genius,  yet  he  was  looked  upon  as  no  better  than  a 
magician,  and  even  a  sorcerer.  It  was  said  in  the  twelfth  century  that  he 
had  possessed  a  book  of  black  magic,  which  gave  him  full  power  over  the 
hierarchy  of  demons,  and  a  brass  idol  which  uttered  oracles  for  him ;  and 
that  this  was  how  he  was  able  to  discover  treasures  even  if  they  were  buried 
in  the  centre  of  the  earth.  Upon  the  day  of  his  death  (April  12th,  1003), 
however,  Satan  (Fig.  161)  is  supposed  to  have  come  to  claim  the  debt  which 
the  Pontiff  had  contracted,  and  the  tradition  ran  that  ever  after,  when  a 
pope  was  at  the  point  of  death,  the  bones  of  Sylvester  II.  were  heard  to 
rattle  in  his  tomb. 

The  accusation  of  magic,  from  which  even  the  illustrious  Gerbert  did 
not  escape,  was  also  levelled  during  the  thirteenth  century  at  the  two 
greatest  men  upon  whom  science  has  set  the  seal  of  genius,  Albert  of 
Bollstadt,  called  Albertus  Magnus,  and  Roger  Bacon.  Both  were  suspected 
of  holding  communication  with  the  demons,  and  the  former,  who  had 
endeavoured  to  expound  the  Eevelation  of  St.  John  (Fig.  163),  was  obliged 
to  resign  the  bishopric  of  Cologne,  and  to  shut  himself  up  in  a  monastery, 
in  order  to  impose  silence  upon  his  accusers ;  while  the  second  expiated  m 
the  dungeons  of  the  Franciscans  at  Paris  the  daring  of  his  experiments  m 
chemistry,  which  were  set  down  to  the  score  of  black  magic.  One  of  their 
contemporaries,  the  celebrated  doctor,  Peter  of  Albano,  was  burnt  in  effigy 
by  the  Inquisition,  and  died  in  prison  at  the  age  of  eighty.  Gabriel  Naude 
says  of  him,  "  He  had  acquired  the  knowledge  of  the  seven  liberal  arts,  by 
means  of  the  seven  familiar  spirits  which  he  kept  confined  in  a  piece  of 
crystal ;  "  and  what  was  looked  upon  as  an  infallible  sign  of  a  pact  with  the 
devil,  he  had  the  faculty  of  summoning  back  to  his  purse  the  money  he  had 
paid  out  of  it. 

Spain,  Scotland,  and  England  also  possessed  about  the  same  period 
several  men  of  science  who  were  denounced  as  magicians.  In  Spain  there 
was  Picatrix,  whose  wonderful  feats  are  attested  by  the  evidence  of  Alfonso, 
King  of   Castile;    while   Scotland  possessed  Thomas  of  Hersildonne,  Lord 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


Soiilis,  and  the  philnsnphcr,  ilichacl  Scott,  ^vllo  finds  his  place  in  Dante's 
"  Divine  Comedy."  Amongst  the  English  must  be  mentioned  the  terrible 
James  Jodoc,  who  succeeded  in  "setting"  the  demon  iu  a  magic  ring;  while 
all  other  Gennan  magicians  are  eclijised  \ty  the  legendary  John  Faust,  who 
made  a  jxict  with  the  devil  for  twenty-four  years,  and  who,  at  the  end  of 
that  period,  was  carried  down  to  hell  bj'  the  demon  ^Mephistophiles,  whom  he 
had  taken  into  his  service. 

But  most  of  these  so-called  magicians  were  men  of  true  learning,  who, 
after  exploring  the  vast  domain  of  science,  lapsed  into  the  stud}'  of  the 
occult  arts.  They  must  not,  therefore,  be  confounded  with  the  sorcerers  or 
enchanters,    who    paid   dearly    for   their    sinister    celebritj',    and   who   were 


Fig.  162.— Dragons. — After  Miniatures  in  the  "  Book  of  the  Marvels  of  tho  World." — Manuscript 
of  the  Fourteenth  Century. — National  Library,  Paris. 


punished  with  death  for  their  misdeeds.  Amongst  the  latter  were  Jacques 
Dulot,  who  during  the  reign  of  Philippe  le  Del  killed  himself  in  prison, 
after  his  wife  had  been  burnt  ajive ;  Paviot,  surntimcd  the  Butcher,  who 
perished  at  the  stake,  while  his  ticmmplice,  luiguerrand  do  ^larigny,  was 
hung  in  chains  at  Monlfaucon  ;  Jean  de  P);ir,  also  roiidciiiurd  to  tlie  stake 
as  a  necromancer  and  an  invoker  of  the  devil,  at  the  end  (if  the  fuurfeenth 
century;  and,  most  notable  of  all,  the  prototype  of  the  legendary  liluebeard, 
the  execrable  Gilles  de  Laval,  called  :Marshal  de  Piaiz  (or  Pietz),  who,  in 
concert  with  a  Florentine  sorcerer  ntnned  I'relati,  dabbled  in  necromancy 
and  magic  during  his  horrible  debauches  at  his  castles  of  Machccoul  and 
Chantoce,  in  Brittany. 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


The  occult  sciences  had  maintained  their  prestige  up  to  the  dawn  of  the 
Renaissance;  hut  they  were  cultivated  at  that  period  by  men  of  genius, 
whose  only  aim  was  the  love  of  science,  and  all  of  whom  came  to  a  miserable 
end,  though  they  were  vain  enough  to  believe  that  they  were  in  direct 
communication  with  spirits  and  demons.  Cornelius  Agrippa  of  Nettesheim, 
who  was  generally  looked  upon  as  an  emissary  of  Satan,  and  who  was  merely 
a  learned  expounder  of  the  doctrine  of  the   ancient  Gnostics,   was  always 


Fig.  163.— The  Angel,  holding  the  Keys  of  Hell,  enchains  the  Devil,  in  the  shape  of  a  Dragon,  in 
the  Pit.— Miniature  from  a  Commentary  on  the  Apocalypse.— Manuscript  of  the  Twelfth 
Century.— In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambrose  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


accompanied,  it  was  said,  by  two  evil  spirits  in  the  shape  of  two  black  dogs. 
Paracelsus,  who  was  believed  to  have  imprisoned  his  familiar  spirit  in  the 
pommel  of  his  sword,  boasted  that  he  could  create  dwarfs,  whom  he  animated 
with  his  archeus  (or  principle  of  heat)  as  a  substitute  for  the  soul,  and  yet 
he  ended  his  days  in  a  hospital.  Cardan  himself,  that  wonderful  philosopher 
who  had  studied  and  dived  deep  into  all  branches  of  sciences,  also  claimed 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


223 


to  possess  a  supernatural  and  invisible  counsellor,  wlioni  he  Lad  brong-lit  from 
the  plauets  of  Ycnus  and  of  ^Mercury,  and  whom  he  employed  in  his  ojiera- 
tions  of  astrology  and  m;igic.  AA^hen  this  mysterious  accomplice  suddenly 
deserted  him  he  died  of  hunger.  These  great  worshippers  of  science  were 
given  to  dabbling  in  sorcery  and  magic,  but  they  did  not  turn  their  supposed 
intercourse  with  the  beings  of  the  invisible  world  to  an  evil  jmrposc. 

All  the  demonographers  are  agreed  iqoon  this  point — that  to  obtain  the 
intervention  of  Satan  in  human  affairs  it  was  necessary  to  form  a  pact  with 
him  (Fig.  1(J4).  "  The  pact  which  the  magicians  make  with  the  demon,"  says 
Martin  del  Rio  in  his  "  Discpiisitiones  Magic;c,"  "is  the  onl}^  base  upon 
which  all  operations  of  magic  stand,  so  that  whenever  the  magician  wishes  to 
do  .something  appertaining  to  his  art,  he  is  expressly,  or  at  all  events  impli- 


Fig.  164. — Tlie  Devil,  attf_-mjitjiig  to  t^C'ize  a  filayician  who  liail  ionned  a  pact  with  hitn,  13  p^'evented 
by  a  Lay  Brother. — Fac-simile  of  a  Miniature  in  the  "Chroniquea  de  Saint-Denis." — Manu- 
script of  the  Thirteenth  Century. — In  the  National  Lihrary,  Paris. 


citly,  comjjelled  to  invoke  the  assistance  of  the  demon."  The  pact  was  formed 
m  thi'ee  different  ways :  the  fir.st  involved  the  performance  of  vari(jus  solemni- 
ties or  ceremonies,  in  the  midst  of  which  the  demon  appeared  in  bodily  .shape 
to  receive  the  homage  of  the  contracting  party  ;  the  second  consisted  in  a 
simple  request  written  and  signed  by  the  person  who  bound  himself  to  the 
demon;  the  third,  reserved  for  those  who  feai-ed  to  face  the  denmii,  was 
accomplished  liy  (he  intervention  of  a  lieutenant  or  vicai',  and  was  Ic  inied  the 
tacit  pact.  All  engagem(>nts  entered  into  with  the  demon  wei'c  based  upon 
impious  or  wicked  jiromises,  which  the  contracting  party  had  to  fulfil  under 
pain  of  immediate  and  violent  death  :  these  were  denial  of  the  Christian  faith, 
contemjit  for  tlie  exercises  of  religion,  hiKdh-ciu-ij  ami  liiiiiLriijitci^/  to  (lad's  emit- 


2  24 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


mands,   repudiation  of   all    saintly  personages,   cliange    of  baptismal   name, 
horrible  blaspbemies,  bloodj'  sacrifices,  &c. 

The  oath  of  fidelity,  which  it  was  necessary  to  take  to  the  demon,  was 
always  pronoimced  in  the  midst  of  a  circle  traced  upon  the  ground,  accom- 
panied by  the  olfer  of  some  pledge,  such,  for  instance,  as  a  piece  of  the 


Fig-.  165. — From  the  smoke  ascendiyig  out  of  the  abj'ss  are  born  scorpions  whicli  scourge  men. 
Miniature  from  a  Commentary  upon  the  Apocalypse. — Manuscript  of  the  Twelfth  Century. 
In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot. 


garments  worn  by  the  person  taking  it.  These  circles  held  an  important 
place  in  all  operations  of  magic,  especially  in  evocations :  there  were  generally 
three  of  them,  and  they  were  supposed  to  establish  between  the  evoker  and 
the  spirits  evoked  by  him  a  line  of  demarcation  which  the  demon  could  not 
cross.  Vervain,  too,  together  with  incense  and  lighted  tapers,  was  almost 
always  employed.      In  addition  to  incense,  the  magicians  and  sorcerers  also 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


employed  a  quantity  of  vegetable,  mineral,  and  animal  substances  to  create 
smoke,  which  was  believed  to  act  upon  the  demons,  and  even  upon  the 
influences  of  the  stars  (Fig.  IGo).  It  is  evident  that  these  fumigations,  in 
which  belladonna,  opiates,  &c.,  were  employed,  and  which  produced  either 
giddiness  or  drowsiness,  helped  the  magicians  vcrj-  much. 

The  art  of  magic  had  regulated  the  use  of  perfumes  for  its  professional  cere- 
monies, in  accordance  with  the  opinion  which  held  the  smoke  of  odoriferous 
substances  to  be  a  mystic  link  between  the  earth  and  the  stars.  Thus  every  kind 
of  smoke  was  addressed  to  some  particular  planet  (Fig.  16-j).  To  the  Sun 
was  dedicated  a  mixture  of  saffron,  amber,  musk,  clove,  and  incense,  to  which 
were  added  the  brain  of  an  eagle  and  the  blood  of  a  cock.  The  Moon  received, 
bv  preference,  the  vapour  of  white  J^opjiy  and  camphor,  burnt  in  the  head  of 
a  frog,  together  with  the  eyes  of  a  bull  and  the  blood  of  a  goose.  To  Mars 
was  burnt  suljjhur,  mixed  with  various  magic  plants,  such  as  hellebore  and 
euphorbium,  to  which  were  added  the  blood  of  a  black  cat  and  the  brain  of  a 
crow.  It  may  easily  be  imagined  how  nauseous  was  the  odour  of  these 
horrible  mixtures,  which  ascended  in  a  spiral  column  of  smoke  varying  in 
hue,  and  athwart  which  the  lookers-on  believed  they  could  see  fantastic 
shapes.  Moreover,  the  most  singular  properties  were  attributed  to  various 
substances  which  were  thrown  upon  live  coals.  In  order  to  produce  thunder 
and  rain,  all  that  was  necessary  was  to  burn  the  liver  of  a  chameleon.  This 
species  of  witchcraft  was  practised  by  a  special  class  of  sorcerers  called 
temped-ramri.  As  late  as  the  sixteenth  century  James  VI.  of  Scotland  had 
Dr.  Fian  tortured  in  his  presence,  upon  the  accusation  of  having  raised  a 
storm  in  which  that  sovereign  nearly  lost  his  life.  While  the  chameleon's 
liver  rai.sed  a  high  sea,  the  gall  of  cuttle-iish,  burnt  with  ro.ses  and  aloe- 
wood,  produced  earthquakes.  A  legion  of  demons  and  phantoms  might  be 
raised  bj^  burning  together  coriander,  parsley,  and  hemlock,  adding  to  them  a 
liquor  extracted  from  black  poppy,  giant  fennel,  red  sandal-wood,  henbane, 
and  other  obnoxious  plants.  But  with  all  these  mixtures  it  was  necessary  to 
observe  the  laws  of  sympathy  and  antipathy  which  prevail  amongst  the  per- 
fumes, as  amongst  the  celestial  bodies,  in  order  to  insure  the  success  of  the 
incantations. 

The  same  laws  of  sympathy  and  antipathy  wore  to  be  carefully  observed 
in  the  preparation  of  philters,  administei'ed  for  the  purpose  of  inspiring 
hatred  or  affection  (Fig.  IGtJ).      These  ]jhilters,  which   in  ancient   tiuies  were 

li   (i 


226 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


believed  to  have  an  irresistible  effect,  were  generally  comijosed  of  hetero- 
geneous substances,  which  the  magicians  pretended  to  be  able  to  reduce  to 
powder  by  means  of  various  unholy  incantations.  The  sorcerers  sometimes 
went  so  far  as  to  use  the  host,  consecrated  or  not,  upon  which  they  traced 
letters  written  iu  blood.  But  they  more  generally  employed  substances 
derived  from  the  three  domains  of  nature,  the  enti'ails  of  animals,  the  feathers 
of  birds,  scales  of  fishes,  and  vegetable  and  mineral  substances.  Pulverized ' 
loadstone,  the  parings  of  nails,  and  the  human  blood  served  to  compose  their 


Fig.  166.— Marriage  of  a  Young  Man  and  an  Old  Woman.— Fac-simile  of  an  Engraving  in  the 
German  Edition  of  the  "  Officia  Ciceronis,"  1542.— In  the  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


powders,  which  were  mixed  with  the  food  or  the  drink  of  persons  iipon  whom 
these  philters  were  desired  to  take  effect.  Some  magicians  still  had  recourse 
to  hippomanes,  which  was  much  in  favour  with  the  Greek  and  Roman 
enchanters,  and  which  was  nothing  more  than  the  lump  of  flesh  found  on 
the  head  of  colts  when  first  foaled.  The  mandragora,  which  ancient  naturalists 
have  described  as  a  very  wonderful  plant,  was  in  stiU  greater  renown  in 
the  Middle  Ages,  and  it  was  made  to  appear  in  all  the  most  sinister  opera- 
tions of  the  magicians.     This  plant,  which  grows  in  the  shape  of  a  human 


THE  OCCULT  SCITXCT.S.  227 


both-,  and  belongs  to  tbe  Solanens  tribe,  was  said  to  have  miraculous  and 
Satanic  properties,  its  origin  being  ascribed  to  a  gruesome  device  of  the 
demon. 

Philters  must  not  be  confounded  with  the  talismans  which  were  in  such 
great  vogue  during  the  3Iiddle  Ages,  and  which  continued  to  be  in  repute 
until  the  end  of  the  Renaissance.  These  talismans  consisted  of  stones  or 
metal  plates,  bearing  astrological  figures,  and  Arabic  or  Persian  inscriptions  ; 
they  came,  in  most  cases,  from  the  Gnostics  of  the  East,  and  were  intended 
to  place  beneath  the  protection  of  the  celestial  powers  the  persons  possessing 
them.  Most  of  these  talismans  had  been  brought  into  Europe  at  the  time  of 
the  Crusades.  The  sixteenth  century  witnessed  the  increase  of  astrological 
forms,  attention  to  which  would  insure  the  accomplishment  of  all  human 
desires.  Thus,  for  instance,  to  those  who  wished  to  earn  honours  and  to 
become  great,  it  was  enjoined,  "Engrave  the  image  of  Jupiter,  who  is  a 
man  with  a  rani's  head,  upon  tin  or  upon  a  white  stone,  at  the  day  and  hour 
of  Jupiter,  when  he  is  at  home,  as  in  Sagittarius,  or  in  the  Pisces,  or  in  his 
exaltation,  as  in  Cancer,  and  let  him  be  free  from  all  obstruction,  principally 
from  the  evil  looks  of  Saturn  or  of  Mars  ;  let  him  be  rapid,  and  not  burnt 
by  the  sun;  in  a  word,  wh(dly  auspicious.  Carry  this  image  upon  you, 
made  as  above,  and  according  to  all  the  above-mentioned  conditions,  and  j-ou 
will  see  things  which  will  surpass  your  belief."  These  comparatively  harm- 
less superstitions  were  covered  by  judicial  astrology  with  the  mantle  of 
science. 

The  magicians  resorted  to  written  incantations  of  a  more  mysterious 
character  as  an  accompaniment  to  the  (jnwihvz,  or  cpiaint  stones  upon  wliich 
nature  had  jjut  some  distinctive  mark;  to  the  magic  jAials  containing  the 
blood  of  owls  and  of  bats  ;  to  the  hand  of  rjlori/,  which  was  no  other  than 
the  withered  hand  of  a  man  who  had  been  hung,  for  discovering  hidden 
treasure  ;  to  the  magic  mirrors,  in  which  were  reflected  the  images  of  the 
dead  and  of  the  absent ;  and  to  the  well-known  shirt  of  necessity,  made  of 
flax  spun  by  the  hands  of  a  virgin,  sown  during  a  night  in  Christmas  week, 
and  representing  upon  the  front  Die  heads  of  two  bearded  men  witli  the 
crown  of  Beelzebub.     This  shirt  was  said  to  render  the  wearer  invulnerable. 

One  of  the  most  dreaded  processes  of  magic  was  that  of  bewitching,  the 
object  of  which  was  to  compass  the  death  l)y  slow  degrees  of  a  person  who 
could  not  be  murdered  outright.     Tlic  first  step  in  this  process  was  to  model 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


in  clay  or  in  virgin  wax  an  effigy  of  the  intended  victim,  and  the  next  to 
kill  a  swallow,  the  heart  of  which  was  placed  under  the  right  arm  of  the 
effigy,  and  the  liver  under  the  left.  Then  the  sacrilegious  operation  began ; 
the  body  and  limbs  of  the  wax  or  clay  figure  were  pricked  with  new  needles, 
to  the  accompaniment  of  the  most  horrible  imprecations.  During  the  trial 
of  the  ill-fated  Enguerrand  de  Marigny,  Prime  Minister  of  Philippe  le  Bel,  a 
magician  was  brought  before  the  tribunal  to  declare  that  he  had,  at  the 
minister's  request,  bewitched  the  King  by  pricking  the  magic  image  which 
represented  him  with  a  needle.  The  bewitchers  had  recourse  to  other 
processes.  In  some  cases  the  figure  was  of  bronze,  and  more  or  less  deformed  ; 
it  was  concealed  in  a  tomb,  and  left  to  rust,  the  rust  coinciding  with  the 
leprosy  which  attacked  the  person  bewitched.  In  other  cases  the  figure  was 
of  wax,  and  was  made  to  melt  before  a  fire  of  wood  and  vervain,  the  progress 
of  the  bewitched  person  to  death  keeping  jjace  with  the  melting  of  his 
image.  In  other  cases,  again,  the  effigy  was  made  out  of  earth  taken  from 
a  graveyard  and  mixed  with  dead  bones :  an  inscription  in  mystic  characters 
completed  the  bewitchment,  and  caused  the  death  of  the  victim  within  a 
short  time. 

Amongst  the  numerous  trials  which  revealed  details  of  this  crime,  the 
most  celebrated  was  that  of  the  Duchess  of  Grloucester,  who  was  accused  of 
having  bewitched  King  Heniy  VI.  She  had  instructed  a  necromancer,  a 
priest  named  Bolingbroke,  with  the  execution  of  this  act  of  magic,  in 
concert  with  a  well-known  sorceress,  one  Marie  Gardemain,  Satan  being 
invoked  under  the  name  of  Mill' one rier.  The  wax  figure  of  the  King  was 
found  half  melted  in  front  of  a  fire  of  dry  plants  which  had  been  gathered 
in  a  cemetery  by  moonlight.  The  crime  being  proved,  the  necromancer  was 
hung,  the  sorceress  burnt,  and  the  Duchess  of  Gloucester  condemned  to 
imprisonment  for  life.  The  most  notorious  bewitchers  of  the  fourteenth 
century  were  Paviot  and  Robert.  In  the  sixteenth  century  the  Italian 
astrologer,  Cosmo  Ruggieri,  would  have  been  compromised  in  many  such 
cases  but  for  the  protection  of  Catherine  de'  Medicis ;  and  it  was  always 
believed  by  the  public  that  the  illness  to  which  Charles  IX.  succumbed  eight 
months  after  the  massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew  was  caused  by  bewitchment. 

Another  piece  of  withcraft,  not  less  formidable,  and  very  easy  to  practise, 
was  that  of  chevilkment  (peg  or  nail  driving),  which  was  also  supposed  to 
have  a  fatal  influence  upon  the  person  whose  death  it  was  sought  to  compass. 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


22g 


A  nail  or  a  wooden  peg  was  driven  into  a  wall,  the  name  of  the  intendeil 
victim  being  pronoimced  at  each  blow  of   the    hammer.       The   sorcerers  of 


Fig.  167. — The  Alchemist. — After  an  Engraving  by  Vriesc. — In  the  Cabinet  of  Designs, 
National  Library,  Paris. 


the    Middle    Ages    had    other    devices   for  killing    people    from    a    distance. 
Thus,   for  instance,  the  airherx,  or  sayittai-ii,  launched  into  the  air  a  sharp- 


230  THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


pointed  arrow,  wliicli  tlie  demon  directed  towards  a  given  goal,  and  rendered 
invisible.  This  arrow  pierced  tlie  heart  of  the  victim  at  a  distance  of  even 
seven  or  eight  hundred  miles.  In  the  fifteenth  century  one  of  these  sagittarii, 
named  Pumbert,  shot  three  of  these  arrows  every  day,  never  failing  to  hit 
his  mark ;  and  his  sole  object  was  to  make  himself  agreeable  to  the  devil, 
who  indicated  to  him  the  various  victims.  The  inhabitants  of  Lauterburg, 
in  Prussia,  stirred  to  indignation  by  his  proceedings,  eventually  fell  upon 
him  and  murdered  him.  The  device  of  the  sagittarii  came  from  the  North, 
where  the  inhabitants  of  Finland  and  Lapland  got  rid  of  their  enemies  by 
means  of  little  leaden  arrows,  which  they  drew  at  a  venture,  to  the 
accompanhnent  of  magic  phrases.  These  arrows  went  straight  to  the  mark, 
and  left  an  invisible  Avound,  which  invariably  proved  fatal  at  the  end  of 
three  days. 

The  Middle  Ages  also  recognised  the  existence  of  certain  magical  agents, 
corporeal  and  incorporeal,  due  to  the  influence  of  the  demon  or  of  familiar 
spirits.  Such  was  the  eiil  cue,  a  device  known  from  the  earliest  ages,  but 
inaccurately  defined  by  the  demonograi^hers,  who  do  not  in  all  cases  attribute 
its  origin  to  the  action  of  the  infernal  powers.  Nor  were  the  hermetic 
philosophers  agreed  as  to  the  nature  of  the  archeus,  the  architect  spirit  which 
labours  without  ceasing  in  the  cavities  of  the  human  body,  and  which 
Paracelsus  looked  upon  as  one  of  the  active  forces  of  the  mind.  The  most 
learned  men  of  science,  such  as  David  of  Planis-Campi  and  Ambroise  Pare, 
were  also  believers  in  the  constellated  ascendant,  which  participated  in  all  the 
combinations  of  the  occult  sciences,  and  which  manifested  itself  sometimes  as 
a  demon,  sometimes  as  a  good  angel.  According  to  the  learned  Ambroise 
Pare,  the  astral  influence  was  that  which  presided  at  the  birth  of  each 
individual.  These  incorporeal  agents  were  therefore  supposed  to  take  part 
in  all  the  acts  of  the  occult  sciences,  and  especially  in  alchemy,  in  the 
practice  of  which  its  adepts  were  incessantly  calling  to  their  aid  the 
elementary  spirits  of  the  metals,  and  the  evil  genii  which  were  invoked 
in  nearly  all  of  the  incantations  (Fig.  167).  These  genii  and  spirits,  whether 
good  or  evil,  are  mentioned  by  name  in  many  of  the  curious  form\il£e  used  in 
the  making  of  seals  (sigilla)  or  magic  rings  which  had  a  power  over  demons, 
preserving  the  wearers  from  sudden  death,  protecting  them  from  illness,  and 
from  danger  by  land  or  sea,  and  procuring  for  them  as  much  money  as  they 
required.     The  Sieur  de  Villamont  relates,  in  his  "  Voyages  en  Orient,"  that 


THE  OCCULT  SCIEXCES. 


231 


he  met  at  Yeuice,  in  1570,  a  Cyj^riot  gentleman  named  Antoine  Brag-adin, 
who  kej^t  up  a  princely  establishment,  and  who,  by  means  of  his  diabolic  art, 
was  able  to  supph'  the  Venetian  Senate  with  five  hundred  thousand  crowns 
which  he  had  manufactured.  This  same  Bragadin  unfoi'tunatcly  ^\-ent  to 
Bavaria,  where  he  was  condemned  to  the  stake  ;  he  obtained,  however,  by 
payment  of  a  large  siun  and  by  confessing  his  crimes,  the  pi'ivilege  of  being 
beheaded  upon  a  scaffold  hung  with  black,  and  surmounted  by  a  gibbet 
covered  with  copper  plates,  "which,"  says  a  writer  of  that  j^eriod,  "were 
tj^ical  of  the  deceptions  practised  by  this  coiner  of  gold." 


Fig.  168. — <,»ld-niaiil  AVitch. — Inic-hiniilc  f.f  a  Wood  Enf,'raving  attributed  to  Holljuiii,  takin  from 
the  German  Translation  of  ljoi.tliiu.s'B  "  Consolations  of  Philosophy,"  Aiig.sburg  Edition,  1537, 
in  folio. 

Most  of  the  hermetic  philosophers,  whether  magicians  or  not,  claimed  to 
be  in  possession  of  the  secrets  of  the  Cabal,  which  was  not,  however,  identical 
with  the  great  Jewish  Calial  (•(lunnmiicated  to  Adam,  according  tci  (lie  rabbis, 
by  the  angels  affei'  liis  e.\])ulsioii  from  Paradise,  and  appnijii'lated  liy  tlie 
Kastern  philosophers  in  tin/  early  ages  of  ( 'hrist  iuiiily.  It  was  at  tirst  a 
wholly  Hjioculative  science,  which  assiuued  (o  I'alhcmi  llie  secrets  of  file  crea- 
tion and  of  tlie  ()i\iiie  Nature,  while  tlie  lieiiuetists  and  nia^ieiiins  iiier<'ly 
n^cognised    in   (he   t'Mlial.as   iiiicleistdod   1)\-  llieiri,  I  lie  art    ol'  eansint;-  eertaiii 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 
232  ^^^^ 


Licher  powers  to  act  npon  the  louver  world,  and  so  to  produce  supernatural 
eftLts  The  main  point,  therefore,  was  to  discover  the  names  of  these 
superior  powers,  and  reduce  them  by  evocations  to  a  state  of  passive  obedience. 
This  macic  Cabal  consisted  in  evocations  destined  to  placeman  in  communica- 
tion with  the  invisible  intelligences  of  heaven  and  earth.  According  to  the 
beHef  of  the  cabalists  of  the  Middle  Ages,  Ariel,  the  genius  of  the  subhmary 
world,  had  beneath  his  orders  the  Princes  Damalech,  Taynor,  and  Sayanon ; 
the  latter  commanded  the  secondary  spirits,  the  most  powerful  of  whom  were 
Guabarel,  Torquaret,  and  Eabianica.  Nanael  was  the  genius  of  the  dmne, 
Jerathel  of  the  terrestrial,  and  Mikael  of  the  political  sciences,  while  Jeliel 
presided  over  the  animal  kingdom.  The  other  genii,  each  one  of  whom  had 
its  attributions  in  the  mysterious  government  of  earthly  things,  formed  an 
innumerable  hierarchy  of  invisible  beings,  whom  the  cabalists  of  the  sixteenth 
century  did  not  scruple  to  pass  in  review,  designating  each  by  its  name  as 
well  as  by  its  distinctive  quality.  Cornelius  Agrippa,  for  instance,  boasted 
that  he  had  registered  in  his  catalogue  the  names  of  six  thousand  intelligences, 
genii,  or  spirits,  belonging  to  a  great  number  of  categories,  and  all  of  which 
might  be  evoked  by  the  adepts  of  the  divine  art. 

^The  occult  sciences  had  in  this  way  brought  within  their  domain  most  of 
the  fantastic  beings  who  had  been  known  to  popular  superstition  from  the 
earliest  periods  under  so  many  names,  and  as  possessing  so  many  different 
attributions.     The  fairies  were  long  supreme  in  the  country  districts,  where 
they  were  said  often  to  appear  to  men  without  being  compelled  by  magic  to 
emerge  from  their  normal  and  invisible  existence.     They  were  caUed/«W 
in  the  South  of  France,  korrkjam  in  Brittany,  ^/ff/;r//er^s  and  lonne,  dames  in 
the  Saintonge  and  Picardy,  hanslms  in  Ireland  and  Scotland,  nomas  in  the 
Northern  countries.      They  were  a  mixture  of  human  and  of  divine  nature ; 
they  were  enchantresses  or  magicians,  presiding  over  the  destiny  of  mortals, 
sometimes  old,  sometimes  young,  beautiful  or  ugly  ;  they  inhabited  solitary 
caves  or  the  snowy  peaks  of    the  mountains,   or  limpid  sources  or   aerial 
spheres.     They  were  not  in  much  request  amongst  magicians,  who  left  them 
to  the  fancies  of  poets  and  novelists.     The  mysterious  beings  whom  magicians 
more  readily  called  to  their  aid  were  the  intermediary  spirits  who  belonged 
rather  to  the  great  family  of  demons.      Amongst  these  may  be  mentioned  the 
estries,  or  demons  of  darkness,  who  hugged  to  suffocation  the  people  whom 
they  met  at  night;  the  goblins,  who  made  their  presence  felt  by  harmless 


THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 


!3J 


antics  ;  tlie  follets,  viho  led  tlie  traveller  astray  by  false  lights  ;  the  liiifoii/^,  or 
III  fins ;  and  the  metallic  spirits,  in  whom  it  is  easy  to  recognise  the  emana- 
tions of  inflammable  gas  which  produce  so  many  sudden  explosions  in  the 
mines,  and  which  are  known  an  fire-damp. 

Demons,  too,  were  the  men-wolves  and  men-dogs,  which  were  very 
similar  to  the  ogres,  or  ouigours,  which  really  existed  in  the  Mongolian  hordes, 
and  whose  terrible  aspect  caused  them  to  bo  the  terror  of  the  populations. 

The  loups-garoifs  (Fig.  169),  men  whom  a  pact  with  the  devil  compelled 
to  assume    the  face  of  a  wolf  once  a  year,   scoured   the  woods  and  fields, 


Fig.  169.— The  Man-dog,  tho  iran-wolf,  the  Man-hull,  and  the  Man-pig.— After  the  Miniatures 

in  the  "  Livre  des  Merveilles  du  Monde."— Manuscript  of  the  Fourteenth  Centurj-. In  the 

National  Lihrary,  r.iris. 


devouring  thfe  young  children  :  like  the  raiiipirrs  in  Toland,  the  hroiirolaqars 
in  Greece,  and  the  white  men  in  Provence,  they  thirsted  after  human  blood. 
Occult  philosophy  recognised,  in  addition,  the  existence  of  many  other  spirits 
of  a  more  inoffensive  kind,  whom  it  comprised  under  the  generic  name  of 
elementary  spirits,  because  they  inhabited  the  four  elements :  si/lidix,  in  tlie 
air ;  salamanders,  in  the  fire  ;  gnomes,  in  the  earth  ;  ondins,  in  the  wafers. 

All  the  beings  of  the  invisible  world  vfcrc  subj(>ct  to  the  influence  or 
dommation  of  magic,  wliidi  always  proceeded,  though  in  different  degrees, 
from  the  woiks  of  the  demon  ;  but  in  the  Middle  Ages  there  were  various 
sectaries  of  this  infernal  art.     The  enehanters,  Ihe  eharmrrs  (male  or  female), 

II   u 


234  THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 

merely  made  use  of  magic  words  or  verses  for  their  charms  or  enchant- 
ments ;  the  necromancers  and  magicians  added  to  their  incantations  a  whole 
ritual  of  dark  and  sinister  ceremonies ;  the  sorcerers  and  the  sorceresses,  stryges 
and  faifurieres,  did  not  hesitate  to  resort  to  the  most  abominable  practices 
in  order  to  get  into  direct  communication  with  Satan.  The  characteristic 
difference  between  the  acts  of  magic  and  of  sorcery  is  precisely  stated  in 
the  following  passage  from  a  theological  work  by  Cardinal  de  RicheKeu : — 
"  Magic  is  an  art  of  producing  effects  by  the  power  of  the  devil ;  there  is 
this  difference  between  magic  and  sorcery,  that  the  principal  aim.  of  magic 
is  ostentation,  and  that  of  sorcery  mischief."  This  definition  will  explain 
how  it  was  that  the  sorcerers  and  sorceresses  were  proceeded  against  and 
punished  in  the  sixteenth  century  with  more  severity  than  the  necro- 
mancers and  magicians  had  been  in  the  Middle  Ages.  The  enchanters 
and  chaimiers  were  only  proceeded  against  for  any  specific  injuries  they 
mio-ht  have  caused,  and  the  astrologers  who  confined  themselves  to  the 
astrological  art  had  nothing  to  fear  in  the  shape  of  legal  repression, 
though  they  were  liable  to  the  censures  and  anathemas  of  the  ecclesiastical 
authority. 

It  was  not  until  the  fifteenth  century  that  sorcerers  and  sorceresses  began 
to  attend  the  Sabbath,  which  henceforward  became  the  council  of  sorcery 
and  the  supreme  court  of  the  demon.  There  is  a  difference  of  opinion  as  to 
the  true  origin  of  the  name  and  of  the  thing  itself.  There  were  nocturnal 
meetings  of  the  sorceresses  among  all  the  early  peoples,  but  these  were  not 
the  Sabbath,  which,  when  first  instituted,  was  essentially  of  an  obscene  and 
impious  character,  obnoxious  alike  to  human  and  Divine  laws.  The  starting- 
point  of  the  Sabbath  was,  perhaps,  what  was  termed,  in  the  twelfth  century, 
the  messe  clcs  Vaiidois,  a  denomination  afterwards  transformed  into  mezcle  des 
Vaudois.  This  messe  was  originally  a  secret  meeting  of  the  Yaudois  proselytes 
of  the  heretic  Pierre  Yaldo  in  the  moimtains  of  Dauphiny.  It  was  said  that 
the  Yaudois  met  in  this  way  to  assist  at  magic  ceremonies,  the  object  of 
which  was  to  destroy  the  crops  and  distui-b  the  elements,  and  that  they  were 
accompanied  by  devilish  feasts  and  infernal  dances,  with  imintelligible  incan- 
tations, resembling  those  of  the  Jews  at  their  synagogue  meetings  on  the  day 
of  the  Sabbath.  These  mysterious  assemblies  continued  to  be  held  in  the 
dark,  but  their  aspect  and  purpose  changed  when  vaulderie  became  synony- 
mous with  sorcery,  and  the  heretics  had  made  way  for  the  sorcerers.     Hence- 


236  THE  OCCULT  SCIENCES. 

forward  the  Sabbath  was  merely  the  trysting-pkice  of  sorcerers  and  sorceresses 
who  assembled  from  all  quarters,  traversing  space  with  the  rapidity  of 
lightning,  some  mounted  upon  animals  of  fantastic  shape,  or  hoisted  upon 
the  shoulders  of  demons,  others  bestriding  the  magic  broomstick  (Fig.  170)- 
It  was  here  that  Satan  held  his  assizes,  and  received  the  impure  homage  of 
his  subjects,  distributing  to  novices  the  mark  and  sign  of  the  infernal 
initiation.  De  Lauere,  in  bis  "Treatise  upon  the  Inconstancy  of  the 
Demons,"  says,  "  The  devil,  at  the  Sabbath,  is  seated  in  a  black  chair,  with 
a  crown  of  black  horns,  two  horns  in  his  neck,  and  one  in  the  forehead,  which 
sheds  light  upon  the  assembly,  the  hair  bristling,  the  face  pale  and  exhibiting 
signs  of  uneasiness,  the  eyes  round,  large,  fully  opened,  inflamed,  and  hideous, 
with  a  goat's  beard,  the  neck  and  the  rest  of  the  body  deformed,  the  body  of 
the  shape  of  a  man  and  a  goat,  the  hands  and  the  feet  of  a  human  being." 

The  horrors  and  sacrileges  committed  at  the  Sabbath  were  no  merely 
imaginary  crimes;  the  sorcerers  could  not  impute  their  misdeeds  to  credulity 
or  ignorance,  and  M.  Ferdinand  Denis  says,  "  All  that  the  wildest  imagina- 
tion can  conceive,  mythological  recollections,  fantastic  traditions,  terrible 
traditions,  form  the  compound  of  the  court  of  Satan.  Diseased  minds 
invent  new-  crimes,  and  the  strident  laugh  of  the  devil  encourages  the 
commission  of  a  thousand  nameless  sins.  Beelzebub  himself  ceases  to  put 
on  the  image  of  a  foul  goat."  Thus  the  faggots  of  the  stake  burnt  through- 
out the  whole  of  the  sixteenth  century,  and  all  kinds  of  torture  were 
applied,  without  distinction  of  age  or  sex,  to  persons  accused  of  having 
assisted  at  the  Sabbath  and  given  themselves  up  to  Satan. 


POPULAR    BELIEFS. 


Superstitions  derived  from  Paganism. — Saturnalia  of  the  Ancients. — Festival  of  the  Barbatorii. — 
Fi  stival  of  the  Deacons. — The  Liberty  of  December,  or  the  Fools'  Feast. — Festival  of  the  Ass. 
— The  Sens  Kitual. — Feast  of  the  Innocents. — The  Moneys  of  the  Innocents  and  the  Fools. — • 
Brotherhood  of  the  Mire  Sottc—The  Mere  Folk  of  Dijon.— The  Se.peut,  or  the  Devil.— 
Pirr-gatory  of  St.  Patrick.— The  Wandering  Jew.— The  Antichiiat  and  the  End  of  ihe  World. 
— The  Prophecies  of  the  Sibyls,  of  Merlin,  and  of  Nostradamua. — Dreams  and  Visions. — 
Spectres  and  Apparitions. — Prodigies. — Talismans. 


-VCTANTirS,  in  liis  book  upon  the  "  Divino 
In.stitutioii,"  says,  "  lleligiou  is  the  worship 
of  what  is  true,  superstition  of  what  is  false." 
"  All  superstition  is  a  great  jjunishment  and 
a  very  dangerous  infamy  for  men,"  added 
St.  Augustine.  The  Coimeil  of  I'aris,  held  in 
S'il),  pronounced  very  eiiergetieally  against 
"  most  pernicious  evils,  which  are  assuredly 
renmants  of  paganism,  such  as  magic,  judiciid 
astrology,  witchcraft,  sorcery  or  poisoning,  divination,  charms,  and 
the  conjectures  drawn  from  dieams."  The  I'rovincial  Council, 
in  14GG,  admitted  with  St.  Thomas  that  superstition  is  an  idolatri/.  The 
illustrious  John  Gerson  had  already  declared  that  "  su2K'rstition  is  a  vice 
opposed  in  the  extreme  to  worship  and  I'eligion."  At  all  periods  the  Church, 
hy  the  organ  of  her  doctors  and  her  councils,  waged  war  ujjon  superstition, 
as  the  good  labourer  roots  \i\i  the  tares  which  threaten  to  choke  the  wheat- 
In  some  eases  superstitious  beliefs  took  the  fcmn  of  an  exaggeration  of  faith 
and  an  excess  of  devotion,  in  which  event  there  was  something  touching 
and  respectable  about  them ;  in  others  they  were  due  to  dcmonomania,  and 
were  the  expi'ession  of  a  culpable  or  aljsurd  ci'cdulify.  In  other  cases, 
again,  they  had  their  root   in   an  erroneous    or    distorted    ti'adition ;    some- 


238  POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


times,  also,  they  were  of  a  futile  and  uncertain  character,  or  became  a  heresy 
against  the  Church.  In  fact,  everj^thing  in  the  physical  world  was  made 
the  jjretext  for  siij)erstition. 

The  Middle  Ages  teemed  with  recollections  of  ancient  mythology,  and 
those  who  may  be  surprised  that  such  should  have  been  the  case,  considering 
the  horror  in  which  the  religion  of  the  Gospel  held  everj^thing  relating  to 
the  errors  of  paganism,  may  be  reminded  that  the  pagan  religions,  when 
they  disajipeared  from  off  the  face  of  the  globe,  left  behind  them  a  mass  of 
popular  prejudices  profoundly  rooted  in  men's  minds.  We  may  cite,  for 
instance,  the  address  of  St.  Eloi,  minister  of  King  Dagobert,  and  Bishop  of 
Noyon,  to  his  clergy: — "Above  all,  I  beseech  of  you,  do  not  observe  any 
of  the  sacrilegious  cu.stoms  of  the  pagans ;  do  not  consult  the  engravers  of 
talismans,  or  the  diviners,  or  the  sorcerers,  or  the  enchanters,  for  any  cause, 
even  for  illness  ;  pay  no  heed  to  omens  or  to  sneezing ;  do  not  be  influenced 

by  the  singing  of  birds  when  j^ou  hear  them  in  your  journeys Let 

no  Christian  pay  heed  to  the  day  he  leaves  a  house,  or  that   tipon  which 

he  returns  to  it Let  not  any  one  at  the  Feast  of  St.  John  celebrate 

the  solstices  by  dances  or  diabolic  incantations.  Let  no  one  seek  to  invoke 
the  demons,  such  as  Neptune,  Pluto,  Diana,  Minerva,  or  the  Evil  Genius. 
....  Let  no  one  observe  the  day  of  Jupiter  (Thursday)  as  a  day  of  rest. 
Let  no  Christian  make  vows  in  the  temples,  or  by  the  side  of  fountains,  or 

gardens,    or   stones,    or    trees Let   no    one    perform    lustrations,    or 

enchantments  upon  herbs,  or  drive  his  flock  through  the  hollow  in  a  tree,  or 

through  a  hole  dug  in  the  ground Let  no  one  utter  loud  cries  when 

the   moon  wanes Let   no  man  call  the    sun   or   moon   his   master." 

Thus  spoke,  in  the  seventh  century,  a  pious  prelate,  who  boldly  attacked  the 
superstitious  of  his  time;  and  this  episcopal  exhortation  readily  explains, 
and  even  excuses,  a  number  of  strange  or  monstrous  facts  which,  though  of 
much  more  _  recent  date,  seem  to  form  part  of  the  annals  of  the  grossest 
idolatry. 

The  Feasts  of  the  Ass,  of  the  Deacons,  of  the  Kings,  of  the  Buffoons,  and 
of  the  Innocents,  characteristic  as  they  were  of  the  Middle  Ages,  and  very 
popular  with  the  people  at  large,  especially  with  the  lower  clergy,  the 
students,  the  lawyers'  clerks,  and  the  youth  of  the  period,  deserve  notice, 
not  only  because  the  recollection  of  them  still  survives  iai  the  local  history 
of  certain  districts,  but  because  they  were  the  origin  of  French  dramatic  art. 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


239 


When  Ilerodian,  Maciobius,  and  Dionysius  of  Ilallcarnassus  describe  the 
Satiu'nalia  and  the  Lupercalia  of  ancient  Eome,  they  might  have  been 
describing  these  singular  festivals  of  the  Middle  Ages,  which  Chi'istianity  was 
compelled  to  tolerate  for  a  long  time,  as  an  inheritance  which,  though 
declining  to  accept,  could  not  be  shaken  o£E  in  a  moment.  This  is  how  it 
was  that  so  late  as  the  fifteenth  century  the  feasts  of  Saturn,  Pan,  and 
other   fifig^n   divinities  were,    in    spite  of   ecclesiastical    censure,   celebrated 


Fig.  171. — The  Procession  of  the  Bcfuf  Gras. — .Stained  Glass  of  the  Sixteenth  Century,  in  the 
Church  of  Bar-sur-Seine  (Aube). 


under  denominations  which  fmly  served  to  disguise  the  persistence  of   the 
idolatry. 

With  tlie  Romans  the  Feast  of  the  Kalends,  or  of  the  Saturnalia,  began 
in  the  middle  of  December,  and  continued  until  the  third  or  flic  fifth  day  of 
January.  As  long  as  it  lasted  jniblic  and  private  business  was  suspcnd('<l, 
and  the  whole  time  wa.s  spent  in  banquets,  concerts,  and  masquerades. 
People   exchanged   presents  very  freely,  and   at    the   banquets   slaves   were 


2^0  POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


proclaimed  kings  of  tlie  festival  instead  of  their  masters.  This  period  of 
license  was  thought  to  be  a  reproduction  of  the  reign  of  Saturn  and  of  the 
Grolden  Age.  Christianity,  whose  first  followers  were  selected  from  the  lower 
classes  of  society,  was  unwilling  at  first  to  deprive  them  of  a  popular  festival 
which  no  longer  possessed  a  religious  significance,  and  the  onlj'  change  made 
was  to  divide  the  festival  into  several  shorter  ones  of  a  day  each.  Hence 
arose  certain  pagan  idolatries  and  reminiscences,  to  which  the  festivals  of 
Christmas,  of  St.  Stephen,  of  St.  John  the  Evangelist,  of  the  Innocents  (from 
December  25th  to  28th),  of  the  Circumcision,  and  of  the  Epiphany,  or  of 
the  Kings,  gave  rise.  The  Lupercalia,  or  the  feasts  of  Pan,  the  god  of  the 
country,  which  the  ancients  celebrated  in  Febi'uarj^,  were  also  divided  by  the 
Christians  into  two  series,  the  feasts  of  the  Carnival  (Fig.  171)  and 
those  of  the  month  of  May,  which  were  generalljr  restricted  to  the  three 
Rogation  daj^s.  The  Church  was  at  first  indulgent  towards  these  remnants 
of  paganism,  merely  blaming  the  abuses  which  they  engendei'ed.  The 
councils  and  doctors  were  more  severe,  but  the  bishops  in  their  dioceses,  the 
priests  in  their  parishes,  and  the  abbots  in  their  monasteries  seemed  afraid 
to  oppose  these  superstitious  habits,  which  still  held  such  great  sway. 

At  first  the  Feast  of  the  Kalends  was  called  the  Feast  of  the  Barbatorii,  the 
reason  no  doubt  being  that  the  actors  in  these  saturnalia  covered  their  faces 
with  hideous  beards,  which  in  the  language  of  the  thirteenth  century  were 
called  harbotres.  We  do  not  possess  any  very  accurate  information  concerning 
this  festival  earlier  than  the  twelfth  century ;  but  it  was  known  to  have  been 
observed  not  only  in  cathedrals  and  parish  churches,  but  in  manjr  monasteries 
and  convents.  It  was  invariably  the  cause  of,  and  the  excuse  for,  the  most 
disgraceful  excesses. 

The  first  liturgical  work  which,  under  the  name  of  "  Liberty  of  Decem- 
ber," describes  the  strange  and  indecent  proceedings  at  the  Feast  of  the 
Buffoons,  bears  date  1182,  and  shows  that  one  of  the  main  features  in  it 
was  an  inversion  of  the  duties  and  rank  of  the  clergy.  As  a  proof  of 
how  thoroughly  this  profane  usage  had  passed  into  custom,  it  may  be 
mentioned  that  though  the  practice  had  been  several  times  anathematized 
by  the  councils,  and  though  several  prelates  and  sovereigns  had  laboured 
hard  to  extirpate  what  a  French  king  called  "  a  detestable  remnant  of  pagan 
idolatry,  and  of  the  worship  of  the  infamous  Janus,"  upon  the  day  of  the 
circumcision  in  1444  the  priests  officiated  in  the  churches,  some  dressed  as 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


241 


women,  some  as  buffoons  (see  Figs.  172  and  173),  some  as  stage-players, 
others  with  their  caj^es  and  chasubles  turned  inside  out.  They  elected  a 
bishop  or  archbishop  of  buffoons,  attired  hiin  in  the  pontitieal  robes,  and 
received  his  benediction,  chanting  an  indecent  parody  of  the  matins.  They 
danced  in  the  choir,  singing   ribald  songs,  ate  and  drank  upon   the  altar. 


172. — Buflbon  playing  the  Bagpipe. —       Fig.  173. — Buff'jon  hold  ng  thu  Bauble  beneath  his 
From  the  "  Atlas  dcs  Monuments  Arm. — After  a  Miniature  in  a  Manuscript  of  the 

de  la  France,"  by  Alex.  Lenoir.  Fifteenth  Centurj-. — National  Library,  Paris. 


played  dice  on  the  pavement,  burnt  old  leather  and  other  foul  matter  in  the 
censer,  and  incensed  the  celebrating  priest  with  it,  and  after  this  mock  mass 
they  promenaded  the  streets  mounted  upon  chariots,  and  vying  with  one 
another  in  grimaces  and  in  insolent  and  impious  remai-ks. 

The  ecclesiastical  censures  and  the  royal  prohibitions  naturally  remained 
dead  letters  at  a  time  when,  as  Gerson  tells   us,  there   were   preachers  who 

I   I 


^42  POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


declared  from  the  pulpit  that  this  festival  -w'as  "welcome  in  the  sight  of 
Grod,"  and  when  the  clergy  of  Troyes  met  the  remonstrances  of  King 
Charles  VII.  by  sajang  that  their  bishop,  Jean  Leguise,  had  ordered  them 
to  celebrate  the  Feast  of  the  Buffoons,  which  was  also  kept  at  Sens. 

This  festival,  which  the  Troyes  clergy  set  great  store  by,  was  the  same  as 
the  famous  Mass  of  the  Ass  which  existed,  in  different  foitns,  in  various  towns 
of  France,  but  the  special  ceremonial  of  which,  drawn  up  expressly  for  the 
Church  of  Sens,  is  still  to  be  read  in  a  manuscript  of  the  thirteenth  century 
preserved  in  the  library  of  that  town.  The  rubrics,  inserted  in  the  text  of 
the  order  of  service,  enable  us  to  follow  the  whole  proceedings  of  this 
mass,  which  was  not  celebrated,  as  has  been  alleged,  in  honour  of  Balaam's 
ass,  but  of  the  ass  which  was  in  the  stable  in  which  our  Lord  was  born, 
or  of  that  which  He  rode  when  He  entered  Jerusalem  upon  Palm  Sunday. 
This  singular  festival  did  not,  it  may  be  added,  cause  any  greater 
disorder  than  that  of  St.  Hubert,  when  dogs  and  falcons  were  brought 
into  the  church  to  receive  the  priest's  benediction,  to  the  sound  of  horn 
and  trumpet ;  but  there  was  no  idea  of  profanity  on  the  part  of  those  who 
did  this. 

The  festival  of  the  Ass  was  conducted  in  this  wise.  A  comely  animal 
having  been  selected,  it  was  conducted  in  procession  through  the  streets, 
which  were  strewn  with  carpets,  and  was  met  by  the  clergy,  chanting,  who 
accompanied  it  to  the  door  of  the  church.  Here  they  annomiced  to  the 
people,  in  Latin  verse,  "  This  is  the  day  of  gladness.  Let  those  who  are  of 
doleful  countenance  get  away  from  here.  Away  with  envj^  and  haughtiness  ! 
Those  who  celebrate  the  Feast  of  the  Ass  desire  to  be  joyful."  The  ass  was  led 
up  to  the  altar,  and  then  was  sung  that  "  Prose  of  the  Ass  "  which,  according 
to  the  evidence  of  a  contemporary,  given  in  verse  at  the  commencement  of 
the  ritual,  brought  into  relief  1h3  talents  of  the  first  chorister,  and  which, 
far  from  being  a  sacrilegious  mockery,  as  the  j)hilosophers  of  the  eighteenth 
century  have  insinuated,  was  a  simple  and  pathetic  manifestation  of  the  faith 
and  piety  of  our  forefathers.  T^Yo  of  the  Latin  strophes,  with  the  French 
chorus,  run : — 

"  Orientibus  portibus, 
Adventiivit  Asinus, 
PuU'her  et  forlissimus, 
Saicinis  aplissimus, 
He,  sire  Ane,  he  ! 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


243 


Hie  in  collibus  Sicljen, 
Enutritus  sub  Eubcn, 
Transiit  per  Jordaiiem, 
Saliit  in  BL-thlcem. 
He,  sire  Ane,  he  !" 


According  to  an  old  tradition,  preserved  at  Sens,  after  the  Ilallelujali, 
which  was  sung  several  times  during  the  service,  all  the  congregation  braved 
in  chorus  in  imitation  of  an  ass.  Then  the  choristers,  from  behind  the  altar, 
chanted  two  Leonine  lines,  proclaiming  that  this  "  is  the  most  illustrious  of 
all  illustrious  days,  the  gi-eatest  of  all  the  festivals."  Lastly,  the  chief  pre- 
centor, who  had  used  his  voice  to  the  utmost  in  chanting  the  "  Prose  of  the 
Ass,"  was  conducted  in  pomp  to  a  well-spread  table,  where  he  and  his 
acolytes  were  supplied  with  a  bountiful  meal. 

The  Feast  of  the  Ass,  as  stated  above,  was  celebrated  in  several  towns  of 
France.  Thus  we  learn  by  the  registers  of  the  Cathedral  of  Autun  that  from 
1411  to  1416,  in  the  Feast  of  the  Buffoons,  an  ass  was  led  in  j^rocession,  with  a 
chasuble  thrown  over  him,  and  to  the  usual  chorus  of,  "  He,  sire  ane,  he  I " 
sung  hy  lay  clerks  in  masquerade  costume.  The  ceremonial  at  Beauvais  was 
very  similar  to  that  at  Sens,  and  it  is  clear  that  the  refrain  c[uotcd  in  the 
preceding  .sentence  was  taken  by  the  spectators  as  an  invitation  to  bray  in  all 
tones.  At  the  Feast  of  the  Ass,  as  celebrated  at  Rouen,  Balaam's  ass  was 
introduced  into  a  show  or  review  of  personages  taken  from  the  Old  and  the 
New  Testament,  and  composing  a  sort  of  mystery-jilay,  interlarded  with 
dialogues  in  doggerel  Latin. 

Eudes  de  Sully,  Bishop  of  Paris,  towards  the  end  of  the  twelfth  century, 
was  one  of  the  prelates  who  tried  the  hardest  to  put  down  these  saturnalia, 
and  if  his  efforts  were  not  crowned  witli  iminediate  success,  he  set  an  example 
to  other  ecclesiastics  to  u.se  their  influence  in  the  same  direction.  The  ritual  of 
the  Feast  of  Buffoons,  properly  so  called,  has  not  come  down  to  our  own  day, 
but  we  know  that  from  the  beginning  of  the  fifteenth  centuiy  it  was  only  under 
the  poi'ch,  in  the  churchyard,  or  upon  the  open  space  beyond — that  is  to  saj', 
outside  the  church  itself — that  these  masquerades  took  place,  and  soon  after- 
wards the  festival  was  sui^pressed  altogether.  The  clerks  regarded  this 
ancient  tradition  as  one  of  their  most  cherished  privileges,  and  were  not 
easily  induced  to  renounce  it ;  but  while  the  laity,  inheriting,  so  to  speak, 
the  Feast  of  the  Buffoons,  formed  associations  for  getting  wp  the  mysterj-- 


244  POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


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Fig.  174.—"  Prose  of  ihe  Ass,"  plain.— Fae-simile  of  the  Pa^e  of  tlie  Eilual  of  Pierre  de 
Corbeil.— Manusc;  ipt  of  the  Tliirleenth  Century.— Sens  Library. 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


245 


ORIENTIS  PARTIBUS 


PREMIERE    STROPHE 


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Fig.  175. — "  Prose  of  the  Ass,"  Bet  to  Music  with  Organ  Accoinpaniment  by  M.  Feiix  Clement. 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


plays,  the  Church  gradually  withdrew  its  protection  and  tolerance  of  the 
excesses  arising  from  the  "Liberty  of  December." 

It  is  certain,  however,  that  the  election  of  a  Pope  of  the  Buffoons  was 
discontinued  before  the  suppression  of  the  Feast  of  the  Innocents,  as  the 
former  was  considered  an  insult  to  the  Papacy  previously  to  the  election  of  a 
Bishop  of  the  Innocents  being  looked  upon  as  offensive  to  the  episcopacy. 
It  is  also  worthy  of  remark  that  these  parodies  of  elections  lasted  longer  and 
were  more  celebrated  in  the  North  than  in  the  South.  At  Amiens,  for 
instance,  as  late  as  1548  there  was  not  only  a  Pope  of  the  Buffoons,  but 
several  Cardinals  as  well.  This  pope,  elected  by  the  subdeacons,  received  as  the 
insignia  of  his  dignity  a  gold  ring,  a  silver  tiara,  and  a  seal.  His  enthrone- 
ment took  place  at  a  banquet  paid  for  by  the  canons  of  the  cathedral,  upon 
the  condition  that  the  servitors  of  the  mock  pontiff  should  abstain  from 
removing  the  bells  from  the  tower  and  committing  other  such  pleasantries. 
The  Bishops  of  the  Innocents,  elected,  consecrated,  and  acclaimed  by  the  pre- 
centors and  subordinate  officials  of  the  Church,  had  the  right  to  wear  the 
mitre,  staff,  and  gloves  at  the  ceremonies  of  the  Buffoons  ;  they  issued  decrees 
and  ordinances  sealed  with  their  seal,  and  also  coined  lead  and  even  copper 
money  bearing  their  name  and  motto. 

The  learned  hold  that  these  pieces  of  monej^,  which  had  much  analogy 
with  the  mjilla,  or  seals,  which  the  Eomans  offered  as  presents  at  the 
Saturnalia,  were  used  as  counters  at  games  of  chance,  and  so  became  sorts  of 
passes  or  coimtermarks  to  be  used  at  the  processions,  ahous,  and  theatrical 
representations  which  the  Bishop  of  the  Innocents  had  the  right  to  organize 
and  have  performed  by  his  adherents.  These  moneys,  great  quantities  of 
which  have  been  discovered,  especially  in  Picardy,  which  seems  to  have  been 
the  mother  country  of  the  Innocents,  are  in  many  cases  similar,  with  regard 
to  the  effigy  and  inscriptions,  to  the  royal  and  baronial  coinage  of  the 
fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries.  In  addition  to  the  Latin  inscription,  Sit 
nomen  Domini  benedictum,  they  often  bear  various  French  inscriptions,  such  as, 
Monnoie  de  I'evesqve  Innocent,  or  nondescript  mottoes,  such  as,  Vous  royez  le 
temps  qu'il  est !     Guerre  cause  maintz  helas  (griefs)— 5e«e  vivere  et  Mari,  &c. 

The  popes  and  patriarchs  of  the  Buffoons  also  coined  money,  but  all  the 
pieces  which  have  been  preserved  are  distinguished  by  two  principal  charac- 
teristics. One  of  them  represents  a  double  head  of  a  cardinal  and  a  buffoon, 
with  the  inscription,  StuUi  aliquando  sapientes. 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


247 


We  cannot  attempt  to  give  even  a  summary  description  of  tlie  extrava- 
gances to  which  the  celebration  of  the  festival  of  the  Buffoons,  or  of  the  Innocents, 
gave  rise  in  the  various  localities  where  thcj'  were  carried  on.  At  Noyon, 
Senlis,  Corbie,  Rhcims,  Toul,  Bayeux,  Eouen,  A'ienne  in  Dauphiny,  'S'iviers 
in  Provence,  &c.,  the  reign  of  Folly  was  annuallj'  proclaimed,  and  lasted  a 
more  or  less  considerable  period.  The  i^rocessions,  the  cavalcades,  the 
mummeries,  the  parodies  of  the  most  solemn  actions,  and  of  the  most  staid 
personages,  made  up  this  popular  festival,  which,  when  it  had  been  excluded 


J_.  e    Monde  eft  plein  de  Tons,  ct  c|ui  n'en.veut  point  voir. 
Doit  demeurer  lout   feul,   et  caiTer  roa  mirolr. 


Fig.  176.— Chariot  of  the  il^cte  Folic,  wh'ch  fifjiired  at  Dijon  in  1610.— Fac-simile  of  a  Dgsign 
communicated  by  JI.  Riiggicii. 


from  the  sanctuary,  was  kept  up  amidst  debauchery  and  riot  in  the  highways. 
At  that  period  each  town  had  its  own  special  procession  or  ^Jioic  :  that  of  the 
Spinet  at  Lille ;  of  the  J/ere  FuUe  at  Dijon  ;  of  the  Prince  of  Love  at 
Toumay;  of  the  Prince  of  Youth  at  Soissons  ;  of  the  Caritats  at  Beziers; 
and  they  were  all  imitations  of  the  Feast  of  Buffoons,  foreshadowing,  so  to 
speak,  the  coming  of  the  theatre,  foi-  these  processions  were  accompanied 
oy  scenes  enacted   in  duinb-sLow,  or  witli   the  accom]ianiinent   of    dialogue, 


248  POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


comic  and  serious,  flliicli  became  mysteries  and  farces  wlien  tliey  had  been  set 
to  rhyme  by  a  poet.     (See  below,  chajster  on  the  Theatre.) 

There  was  a  general  effort  made,  moreover,  to  form  private  societies  for 
preserving  and  perpetuating  the  traditions  of  the  Feast  of  Buft'oons.  The 
brothers  of  the  Passion,  whom  Charles  VI.  allowed  to  settle  in  Paris  (1402), 
and  to  represent  the  mysteries  in  a  room  at  the  Trinity  Hospital,  were,  in  the 
origin,  members  of  the  Church  and  pious  persons  who  were  desirous  of  letting 
religion  benefit  by  the  unbridled  passion  for  spectacles  and  masquerades 
which  the  Feast  of  the  Buffoons  had  spread  amongst  the  clergy  and  the 
population.  At  first  the  ecclesiastical  authorities  encouraged  these  plays,  as 
being  more  edifying  than  those  of  the  Pope  of  the  Buffoons  and  the  Bishop  of 
the  Innocents.  The  lawyers,  advocates,  procvireurs,  and  clerks  of  the  Basoche, 
who  remembered  the  good  times  of  the  "  Liberty  of  December,"  resolved  to 
offer  an  asylum  to  the  Fotie,  when  it  was  condemned  hy  and  banished  from 
the  Church.  They  created  the  kingdom  of  Sots  and  the  emj)ire  of  Fools, 
electing  a  jjrince,  whom  they  crowned  with  a  green  cap  with  donkey's  ears, 
under  the  name  of  the  Mere  Sotte.  The  principal  object  of  this  new  institu- 
tion was  the  representation  of  farces  or  satires  upon  the  people  in  authority. 

Amongst  the  provincial  societies  which  carried  on  the  traditions  of  the 
Feast  of  the  Buffoons  must  be  mentioned,  first  of  all,  that  of  the  Mere  FoUe  de 
Bijon  (see  Fig.  176),  which  Philip  the  Good,  Duke  of  Burgundy,  himself 
founded  in  1454,  for  the  sole  purpose  of  putting  an  end  to  the  scandalous 
orgies  which  took  place  in  the  churches  at  the  festivals  of  Christmas, 
Epiphany,  and  Eogation  Sundays.  This  society,  the  practices  of  which  were 
in  complete  harmony  with  the  customs  of  that  wine- growing  country,  con- 
sisted of  more  than  five  hundred  persons  of  all  ranks,  and  they  Avere  divided 
into  two  parties,  one  of  infantry  (see  Fig.  177),  the  other  of  cavalry,  all  of 
whom  wore  the  fool's  cap  and  tiveries ;  that  is  to  say,  costumes  which  were  a 
motley  mixture  of  yellow,  red,  or  green.  The  leader  of  the  band,  named 
Mere  Folte,  passed  reviews  of  his  army,  presided  over  a  mock  tribunal,  and 
pronounced  mock  judgments,  which  his  procurator-fiscal  green  undertook  to  put 
mto  execution.  These  trials  and  pleadings,  cavalcades  and  solemn  assemblies, 
brought  into  relief  all  the  types  and  attributes  of  Folly,  '^^•h^ch  have  disap- 
peared without  leaving  the  world  any  wiser ;  but  the  ancient  Feast  of  the 
Buffoons,  when  driven  from  under  the  vaulted  roof  of  the  temple,  continued 
to   inspire    songs    and  farces   which   betokened  the  birth  of    sonre  comedy, 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


249 


while  the  clergy  inaugurated  the  serious  drama  by  histories  taken  from  the 
sacred  books  and  the  legends  of  the  saints.  The  mystery-plays  and  farces 
were,  therefore,  so  much  to  the  credit  of  the  Feast  of  Buffoons,  but  there  is 
an  interval  of  three  or  four  centuries  between  the  "  Prose  of  the  Ass  "  and 


,/ \, 

K". :",- 

^ 

)»IM_ 

8  a 

li 

Fig.  177.— Slaff  of  Iho  Dijon  Infantry  in  1482.— Fac-simile  of  a  Design  communicated  by 

M.  Kuggieri. 


tlie  scenic  compositions  of  Jean  Micliel,  of  Aiidi-r  de  la  ^'igllc,  and  of  I'etcr 
Griugoire.      (See  below,  cha2Jter  on  the  Tlwatrc.) 

Many  instances  might  be  given  of  popular  errors  whicli  liad  their  soui'ce 
ill  the  traditions  of  antitpiity,  and  whicli   niaiiilained  (he  ideas  of   pagalli^m 

K    K 


250 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


amidst  the  most  lioly  and  solemn  of  beliefs ;  but,  at  tbe  same  time,  these 
errors  would  not  have  been  sustained  had  not  the  credulity  of  the  men  of 
learning  helped  to  propagate  them  by  the  creation  of  a  world  of  fantastic 
beings  (see  Fig.  178).  Thus,  for  instance,  when  Peter  the  Eater,  called 
Comestor,  a  famous  theologian  of  the  twelfth  century,  in  his  paraphrase  of  the 
Scriptures,  arrived  at  the  fourth  chapter  of  Genesis,  where  Moses  speaks  of 
the  giants  born  to  the  sons  of  God  and  the  daughters  of  men,  he  takes  care 


Fig.  178.— The  Serpent,  or  the  Dragon,  and  the  Behemoth,  or  the  Devil.— Miniature  from  a 
Commentary  on  the  Apocalypse.— Manuscript  of  the  Twelfth  Century.— In  the  Library  of 
M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


to  state  that  these  giants  are  of  the  family  of  Enceladus  and  Briareus.  The 
deluge  of  Deucalion  and  Pyrrha  was  borrowed  from  to  furnish  certaiu 
dramatic  incidents  in  the  Deluge  of  the  Bible ;  the  serpent  Python  and  the 
monsters  bred  from  the  slime  of  the  earth  (Figs.  179  to  182),  in  the  Greek 
theogony,  wore  imported  into  the  glossology  which  the  rabbis,  those  grand 
masters  of  superstition,  were  continually  introducing  into  the  elastic  frame- 
work   of    the   Talmud.      The   Christians   were    careful  not  to  abandon    the 


POPn.AK   lUHJKFS. 


emblematic  representation  of  these  monsters,  whieli  soon  became,  in  the  eyes 
of  the  people,  the  miiltifonn  persouifieation  of  the  spirit  of  evil. 

There  are  numerous  legends  in  which  the  serj^ent  is  vanquished  l>v  the 
great  champions  of  the  faith.  In  Pha'uicia  we  find  St.  George  slaj'ing  tlie 
dragon  which  was  about  to  devour  the  daughter  of  the  king  of  that  country  ; 
St.  Michael  and  St.  Germain  arming  themselves  with  the  cross  to  drive  out 


y^t^^^^ 

H 

I^^^N 

^ 

^^Sv 

Kw 

^ 

v^M) 

\ 

^^%^ 

»'i 

^^ 

^W 

1% 

V/^sf?X, 

^ 

&\^^_ 

■^^1 

^^^r 

^ 

I  -^  , 

^ 

at^ 

'^h 

^^. 

K 

M 

sSl  ^^ 

rii^brl 

ii 

Hjpr^j^ 

^^^M 

g^^s^ 

^^2 

^^ 

fe 

^^K 

1^ 

^^ 

Figs.   170  to   182. — Mon.ster8  bom  from  the  Deluge. — After  the  Wood  Engravings  in  the 
"  Chronique  de  Nurenibtrg,"  printed  in  H93,  in  folio. 


the  winged  serpents  which  were  invading  the  land  of  Parisis  ;  St.  llomain 
binding  with  his  stole  the  GargonUlo  of  Rouen  (see  Fig.  l''^-'>)  ;  St.  ilartlia 
leading  with  a  string  the  teri'iblc  Turdnijiii'  which  bad  laid  waste  the 
neighboui-houd  of  Tarascon.  Thus  the  serpent  tcjok  liis  j)laee  1ji  emblazniiry 
with  the  unicorn,  the  cluimera,  and  otiier  marvellous  animals,  lie  has  his 
place  in  history  under  the  designation  of  JVlelusine  of  Lusignan  ;  he  has  been 


252 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


the  theme  of  the  most  wonderful  travellers'  tales,  and  is  to  be  found  from 
one  end  to  the  other  of  science,  poetry,  and  art. 

It  is  the  serpent,  or,  to  speak  more  accurately,  the  devil,  to  whom  is 
atti'ibuted  the  birth  of  the  grotesque  and  hideovis  monsters  which  descended 
in  a  natural  order  of  succession  from  the  giants,  pigmies,  cyclops,  satyrs, 
centaurs,  harjjies,  tritons,  and  sirens  of  mythology  (Fig.  191).  The  fathers 
of  the  Church  did  not  ventiire  to  call  into  question  the  existence  of  these 
monsters,  whom  Pliny  and  the  ancient  naturalists  complacently  admitted  into 
the  hierarchjr  of  living  things ;  and   the  people  were  all  the  more  ready  to 


Fig.   183.— The  GargouiUe.— From   the   Stained-glass  Window   representing   the  "Life  of 
St.  Remain,"  in  the  St.  Remain  Chajjel,  Rouen  Cathedral. 


accept  them  as  realities,  because  they  attributed  their  existence  to  the  power 
of  the  demon. 

It  is  astonishing  that  none  of  those  who  lived  in  the  Middle  Ages,  Avith 
the  exception  of  a  few  heroes  of  legends,  claimed  to  have  discovered  the 
earthly  Paradise,  though  learned  writers  tried  hard  to  define  its  precise 
geographical  position.  If  some  one  of  the  travellers  of  the  twelfth  or  of  the 
thirteenth  century,  such  as  Benjamin  de  Tudele,  Jean  Piano  Carpini,  or 
Marco  Polo,  had  put  forward  such  a  claim,  it  would  assuredly  have  been 
admitted,  inasmuch  as  many  of  the  Christians  of  that  period,  so  fertile  in 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


253 


wonders,  did  not  hesitate  to  believe  that  access  could  be  gained  to  purgatory, 
and  that  Paradise  could  be  seen  from  afar,  -uithout  leaving  the  world  of  the 
livino-  Sorcerers  alone  were  believed  to  have-  the  power  of  descending  into 
hell.  The  entrance  into  purgatory,  whither  certain  persons  claimed  to  have 
made  their  way  and  to  have  returned  from,  was  believed  to  be  in  Ireland, 
in  an  island  of  Lake  Derg.  This  purgatory,  according  to  the  legend,  had 
been  discovered  by  St.  Patrick  (Fig.  184),  guided  h\  Jesus  Christ  himself, 
who  was  said  to  have  left  him  for  a  day  and  night  in  this  "  very  obscure  pit," 
on  emerging  from  which  the  saint  found  himself  "  purged  from  all  his 
former  .sins,"  in  gratitude  for  which  he  at  once  built,  close  to  the  pit,  a 
handsome  church  and  a  monastcrv  of  the  order  of  St.  Augustine.     After  his 


Fig.  184.— The  Purgiitory  of  Jlonsignor  St.  Patrick. — Miniature  of  a  Manu.script  of  the  Fourteenth 
Century  (Xo.  6,326). — In  the  National  Library,  Paria. 


death  the  people  came  there- in  pilgrimage:  a  few  rash  persf)ns  attem2:)ted  to 
enter  the  pit,  1)iit  they  never  reappeared.  There  was  one  more  report 
brought  from  purgatory  by  an  English  knight  named  Owen,  who,  loaded 
with  sins,  determined  to  try  the  experiment  of  St.  Patrick  (Fig.  18o),  and 
who  was  fortunate  enough  to  beliold  again  the  rays  of  the  sun,  after  having 
arrived  at  the  gate  of  hell,  and  seen  from  afar  the  heavenly  Jerusalem.  The 
story  which  he  told  of  the  strange  and  wonderful  things  he  had  seen  in 
the  company  of  the  devils,  who  refrained  from  hiirming  him  iH-cause  he 
incessantly  invoked  the  name  of  the  Saviour,  was  implicitly  believed,  niid 
generally  referred   to   tlirougliotit   the  Jliddle  Ages.       The   monks  who  kept 


254 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


watcli  over  St.  Patrick's  gap  showed  tKe  doorway  of  it  to  the  pilgrims  who 
were  attracted  to  Ireland  hy  motives  of  piety  or  curiosity,  but  the  aperture 
remained  impenetrably  closed.  Notwithstanding,  and  though  no  one  ventured 
to  renew  the  ex^aeriment  made  by  the  Chevalier  Owen,  every  nation  took 
care  that  it  was  represented  in  the  stories  told  of  visits  to  the  purgatory  of 
St.  Patrick,  so  firmly  rooted  was  the  belief  in  it  throughout  Europe. 

A  not  less  famous  superstition,  which  dates  from  the  same  period,  and 
which  seems  to  have  been  brought  from  the  East  after  the  first  Crusades, 
is  that  of  the  Wandering  Jew,  as  the  inhabitants  of  the  country  dubbed 
every  beggar  with  a  long  white  beard  who  trudged  along  the  roads  with 
eyes  downcast,  and  without   opening   his  lips.     The  story  of  this  accursed 


Fig.  185.— Owen,  accompanied  by  Monks  chanting-  the  Litanies  for  the  Dead,  repairs  to  the 
Aperture  of  the  Gap,  and  creeps  into  it.— Minialure  of  a  Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century 
(No.  1,588).— In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


pilgrim  was  told  for  the  first  time  to  the  monks  of  St.  Albans  in  1228  by 
an  Armenian  archbishop  who  had  arrived  from  the  Holy  Land.  Joseph 
Cartaphilus  was  doorkeeper  at  the  prastorium  of  Pontius  Pilate  when  Jesus 
was  led  away  by  the  Jews  to  be  crucified.  As  Jesus  halted  upon  the  threshold 
of  the  praDtorium,  Cartaphilus  struck  him  in  the  loins  and  said,  "  Move  faster ; 
why  do  you  stop  here?"  Jesus,  turning  round  to  him,  said  with  a  severe 
look,  "  I  go,  and  you  will  await  my  coming."  Cartaphilus,  who  was  then 
thirty  years  old,  and  who  since  then  always  returned  to  that  age  when  he 
had  completed  a  hundred  years,  was  always  awaiting  the  coming  of  the 
Lord  and  the  end  of  the  world.  He  was  supposed  to  be  a  man  of  great 
piety,  of  few  words,  often  weeping,  never  smiling,  and  being  content  with 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


255 


the  most  frugal  nourishment  and  the  phtinest  gannents.  Moreover,  he 
announced  the  final  judgment  of  soids,  and  recommended  his  own  to  God. 
This  simple  story  was  well  calculated  to  make  an  impression  upon  persons 


Fig.  18G. — The  Tree  of  Life,  or  Ihe  "Woeping-trei.-,  jilantod  in  the  Stiite.s  of  Prestcr  John. 
Fac-similo  of  a  Wood  Engraving  of  the  Sixteenth  Century. 


of  pious  mind,  and  some  singular  additions  were  made  to  it  in  Germany. 
I'aul  of  Eitzen,  a  German  bishop,  declared,  in  a  letter  to  a  friend,  tliat  he  liad 
md    the  AVaiidcriu"- Jew  at    IFainlini'i-   in    I'dil,  and    liad   a  ion";  conversalion 


2^6  POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


with  him.  His  name  was  no  longer  Joseph  or  Cartaphilus,  but  Ahasuerus. 
He  appeared  to  be  fifty  years  of  age;  his  hair  was  long,  and  he  went 
barefoot ;  his  di-ess  consisted  of  very  full  breeches,  a  short  petticoat 
coming  to  the  knee,  and  a  cloak  descending  to  his  heel.  He  was  jjresent 
at  the  Catholic  sermon,  notwithstanding  his  creed,  and  prostrated  himseLf, 
with  sighs  and  tears  and  beating  of  the  breast,  whenever  the  holy  name  of 
Jesus  was  pronounced.  His  speech  was  verj-  edif  j'ing  ;  he  could  not  hear 
an  oath  without  bursting  into  tears,  and  when  offered  money  would  only 
accept  a  few  sous.  The  story  of  his  meeting  oui'  Lord,  as  related  by  Bishop 
Paul  of  Eitzen,  differed  from  the  original  account  so  far  as  this,  that  he  was 
standing  ia  front  of  his  house,  with  his  wife  and  children,  when  he  roughly 
entreated  Jesus,  who  had  halted  to  take  breath  while  carrj-ing  his  cross  to 
Calvary.  "  I  shall  stop  and  be  at  rest,"  was  the  indignant  reply  of  the  King 
of  the  Jews,  "  but  you  will  be  ever  on  foot."  After  this  decree  he  quitted 
his  house  and  family,  to  do  penitence  by  wandering  over  the  world.  He  did 
not  know  what  God  intended  to  do  with  him,  in  compelling  him  to  lead  so 
long  this  miserable  life.  In  the  sixteenth  century  there  was  not  a  town  or 
village  but  what  claimed  to  have  given  hospitality  to  the  unfortunate  witness 
of  Christ's  passion ;  and  yet,  whenever  his  appearance  was  announced  La  any 
place,  it  was  believed  to  foreshadow  great  calamities.  Thus  the  "N^'anderiag 
Jew  was  believed  to  have  been  seen  at  Beauvais,  K^oyon,  and  several  towns 
ia  Picardy  when  RavaiQac  assassinated  Heniy  lY. 

Another  superstition,  not  less  popular  than  that  of  the  Wandering  Jew 
in  the  Middle  Ages,  may  also  perhaps  be  attributed  to  the  same  origin ; 
namely,  the  Freder  John,  a  sort  of  pontiff-king,  half  Jew,  half  Christian,  who 
for  centuries  had  governed  ia  India,  or  in  Abyssinia,  a  vast  empire  ia  which 
the  hand  of  God  had  collected  more  marvels  than  in  the  paradise  of  Mahomet 
(Fig.  186).  It  was  an  Ai-menian  bishop,  too,  who  brought  to  Europe  the 
first  storj-  as  to  the  fabulous  personage,  and  many  a  traveller,  chi-onicler,  and 
poet  capped  it  with  still  more  wonderful  details.  In  1507  a  letter  (evidently 
written  ironically  by  a  partisan  of  the  Reformation)  was  put  into  circulation, 
in  which  Prester  John,  who  entitled  himself,  by  the  grace  of  God,  the 
Almighiy  King  of  all  the  Christian  kings,  after  making  an  orthodox  profession  of 
faith,  invited  Pope  Julius  II.  and  King  Louis  XII.  to  come  and  settle  in  his 
States,  which  he  described  as  the  most  favomed  upon  the  face  of  the  earth. 
The  descriptions  which  he  gave  of  them  were  very  tempting,  and  it  is  even 


Vig.  187. — The  Reign  of  Antichrist.— After  an  Engraving  by  Micliiiol  Volgeniiith,  in  ihn  "  I^iliii 
Chronicarum,"  1493,  in  folio.— Gihinet  of  Engravings.     Niitional  Library,  Phuh. 


258  POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


said  that  the  Kings  of  Portugal,  Emanuel  and  John  III.,  went  so  far  as  to 
send  several  expeditions  to  India  and  Abj'ssinia,  to  see  -n-hether  these  wonders 
really  existed.  According  to  certain  savants  rather  less  creduloiis,  the  fiction 
of  Prester  John  had  its  origin  in  the  actual  existence  of  a  Nestorian  leader, 
named  Johannes  Presbyter,  who  in  the  twelfth  century  founded  a  powerful 
empire  in  Tartary. 

It  was  by  a  natural  transition  that  to  the  Wandering  Jew  and  Prester  John 
came  to  be  attached  the  personality  of  the  Antichrist  who,  since  the  year 
1000,  had  always  been  expected,  and  whose  long-delayed  appearance  was  to 
be  a  prelude  to  the  end  of  the  world.  "  At  the  end  of  a  thousand  years," 
said  St.  John,  "  Satan  wiU  leave  his  prison  and  seduce  the  peoples  which  are 
at  the  four  corners  of  the  earth."  Basing  their  argiunents  upon  this 
prophecy,  which  they  interpreted  the  Avrong  way,  several  early  theologians  had 
announced  that  the  millennium  would  mark  the  accomplishment  of  the  times. 
T^'hen  that  date  arrived  the  early  Christians  at  once  prepared  to  appear  before 
God,  renouncing  all  their  property,  which  they  gave  to  the  churches  and 
monasteries,  and  suspending  as  useless  the  cultivation  of  the  land  and  all 
industrial  and  commercial  pursuits.  The  year  thousand,  which  was  expected 
to  be  the  last  of  the  world,  was  marked  by  many  threatening  signs  in  heaven 
and  earth — bj-  eclipses,  comets,  famine,  and  overflowing  of  rivers.  A  contem- 
porary writer  has  left  us  a  terrible  picture  of  the  desolation  which  then 
prevailed  throughout  the  entire  "SVest.  The  whole  talk  was  of  terrible  miracles 
and  unheard-of  prodigies.  Upon  the  eve  of  the  day  when  the  year  thousand 
was  on  the  point  of  completion,  the  whole  popidation  crowded  to  the 
churches,  weeping  and  prajdng,  waiting  in  dread  expectation  for  the  sound 
of  the  seven  triunpets  and  the  coming  of  the  Antichrist  (Fig.  187).  But  the 
Sim  rose  as  usual,  none  of  the  stars  fell,  and  Xature's  laws  continued  their 
course.  Nevertheless,  it  was  believed  that  this  was  only  a  short  respite  which 
God  had  granted  to  the  world  in  order  that  sinners  might  be  converted,  and 
the  days,  weeks,  and  months  were  anxiously  counted.  It  was  not  iintil  many 
years  afterwards  that  men's  minds  were  reassured.  Even  after  this  the  end 
of  the  world  was  from  time  to  tijne  announced  and  expected,  and  the  coming 
of  Antichrist  was  believed  to  be  imminent,  whenever  civil  or  foreign  warfare, 
famine,  epidemics,  or  moral  disorder  ia  society  seemed  to  call  him  to  the 
earth.  In  1600,  more  especially,  it  was  rumoured  that  he  had  at  length 
been  born  ;  at  Babylon,  according  to  one  report ;  near  Paris,  according  to 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


259 


anotbor.  A  sorceress,  put  upon  her  trial,  declared  tliat  sLe  had  held  this 
diabolical  infant  upon  her  knees  at  a  Sabbath,  and  that  he  had  claws  instead 
of  feet,  wore  no  shoes,  and  coidd  speak  every  language. 

Moreover,  proj^hecies  and  presages,  the  ordinary  accessories  of  all  historic 
events  of  any  importance,  always  had  a  great  hold  upon  the  popular  imagina- 
tion, which  was  invariably  ready  to  accept  mj^sterious  interpretations  of  the 
plainest  and  most  trifling  facts.  Since  the  decadence  of  the  false  gods, 
the  orators  of  the  pagan  temjiles  were  mute,  but  this  was  made  ujj  for  by  the 
prophecies  attributed  to  the  Sibyls,  who  continued  to  be  held  in  honour  by 


Fig.  188.— The  Tok.'n  of  Jl;.c6  Bonli.jnimf,  I'iint.T  uml   I'.o.iksrlln-  at  I-ymis.— Takin  from  tl.c 
original  Edition  of  the  "  I'loiiheciea  of  Slichacl  Xostnidunius,"  15.J.5,  octavo. 


the  Christians,  f(jr  it  was  firmly  bi'lieved  that  they  had  prediclcd  the  biith 
of  Christ.  The  proj)hccies  of  Merlin  the  Enchanter,  a  bard  of  the  fiflh 
century,  were  in  sjDccial  favour. 

The  success  of  the  projihecics  of  Michael  Nostradamus  surpassed  that  of 
cdl  previous  soothsayers.  Catherine  de'  Medicis  and  liei-  smi  (^'liarles  IX., 
more  superstitious  than  the  least  eiiliglifened  of  their  sulijecis,  contributed  to 
their  popularity  liy  paying  visits  to  tliis  famous  astrologer  at  the  little  town 
of  Salon,  in  I'rovence,  to  which  he  had  withdrawn.      The  courtiers  naturally 


^g^  POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


follo^Yed  tlieir  example,  and  were  also  anxious  to  liave  their  horoscopes 
taken.  It  was  in  the  stars  and  the  planets,  in  the  revolutions  of  the  sun  and 
the  moon,  that  Nostradamus  claimed  to  be  able  to  read  the  destinies  of  men 
and  of  nations.  He  composed,  after  his  pretended  astronomical  observations, 
an  unintelligible  sort  of  conjuring  book  in  rhj-med  verse,  teeming  with 
hybrid  words  and  foreign  names,  and  he  made  many  additions  to  it  up  to  the 
date  of  his  death  in  1556.  The  form  of  these  prophecies  (Fig.  188)  made  it 
very  easy  to  find  them  applicable  more  or  less  clearly. to  all  the  events  of 
history,  and  this  sustained  the  reputation  of  the  astrologer  of  Salon  long 

after  his  death. 

But  Nostradamus,  in  his  collection  of  Sibylline  oracles,  dealt  only  with 
the  fate  of  kings,  princes,  and  nations,  and  he  was  succeeded  by  a  number  of 
less   pretentious  astrologers   who    prepared  (jendhUattcs,  or  horoscopes,  upon 
interrogation  of  the  stars,  for  all  those  who  came  to  them  with  money.     These 
astrologers  had  for  competitors  the  diviners,  who  made  it  their  business  to 
interpret  visions  and  dreams,  and  who  could  trace  back  the  origin  of  their 
profession  to  a  very  remote  period.      With  all  ancient  peoples,  and  notably 
with  the  children  of  Israel,  dreams  were  looked  upon  as  anticipated  reflections 
of  the  future,  as  divine  or  diabolical  warnings,  whether  in  disclosing  without 
concealment  or  enigma  the  things  which  were  destined  to  occur,  or  whether 
concealing  beneath  a  sombre  and  mysterious  veil  the  spectre  of  destiny.     The 
Church  did  not,  as  a  rule,  do  more  than  declare  that  dreams  were  two  kinds— 
sometimes  sent  by  God,  sometimes  wrought  by  the  demon.      Thus,  according 
to  the  writers  of  the  period,  there  was  no  important  event  in  the  Middle  Ages, 
or  even  subsequently  to  the  Renaissance,  which  was  not  announced  by  a  dream. 
The  day  before  Henry  II.  was  struck  down  by  the  blow  of  a  lance  during 
the  tournament,  Catherine  de'  Medicis,  his  wife,  dreamt  that  she   saw  him 
lose   one    of   his   eyes.      Three   days  before   he  fell   beneath   the   knife  of 
Jacques   Clement,    Henry    III.    dreamt    that    he    saw    the    royal    insignia 
stained  with   blood   and  trodden   under  foot  by   monks   and   people  of  the 
lower  classes.     A  few  days  before  he  was  murdered  by  Eavaillac,  Henry  1\  • 
heard  during  the  night  his  wife,  Marie  de'  Medicis,  say  to  herself,  as  she 
awoke,  "Dreams  are  but  falsehoods  !"  and  when  he  asked  her  what  she  had 
dreamt,  she  replied,  "  That  you  were  stabbed  upon  the  steps  of  the  Little 
Louvre  ! "     "  Thank  God  it  is  but  a  dream,"  rejoined  the  King. 

The  death  of  Henry  IV.,  like  that  of  Julius  Cassar,  was,  moreover,  pre- 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


261 


ceded  and  accompanied  bj'  presages  of  many  kinds.  From  one  end  of  France 
to  the  other,  there  were  so  many  precursory  signs  of  a  great  event  that  the 
people  believed  that  the  end  of  the  world  was  at  hand.  At  Paris  the  May- 
pole, planted  in  the  courtyard  of  the  Louvre,  fell  to  the  ground  without  being 
touched ;  in  the  abbey  church  of  St.  Denis  the  stone  which  sealed  the  funeral 
vault  of  the  Valois  lifted  itself  from  its  place,  and  the  statues  upon  the  roj'al 
tombs  shed  tears.  Henry  lY.  himself  had  gloomy  presentiments,  which 
doubtless  arose  from  the  great  number  of  official  warnings  addressed  to  him 
on  this  subject.  "  You  do  not  understand  me,"  he  said  to  the  Due  de  Guise 
on  the  very  morning  of  his  death  ;   "when  vou  have  lost  me,  you   will  learn 


laii 


Fig.  189. — Dream  of  Childeric. — After  a  Miniature  in  the  "  Chronicles  of  St.  Denis." — Manuscript 
of  the  Fourteenth  Centuiy.— In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


to  appreciate  me,  and  that  will  not  be  long  first."  He  often  remarked  that  it 
had  been  predicted  for  him  that  he  would  die  in  a  carriage  and  in  his  fiftieth 
year.  After  the  murder  numerous  visions,  evidently  bearing  upon  this  tragic 
event,  were  mentioned  :  at  Douai,  a  priest,  who  was  dying  at  the  verj'  hour 
the  crime  was  committed,  had  three  convulsions,  and  expired  saying,  "  The 
greatest  monarch  in  the  world  is  being  slain."  In  an  abbey  in  Picardy  a 
nun  who  was  sick  exclaimed  at  the  moment  of  the  assassination,  "  Pray  God 
for  the  King,  for  he  is  being  killed." 

Visions,  which  have  often  been  confounded  with    dreams,  do  not  occupy 


262  POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


less  jDlace  in  history  than  the  latter.  They  were  so  frequent  in  the  Middle 
Ages  that  the  gravest  historians  mention  instances  of  them  without  making 
the  slightest  reservation.  It  is  difficult  to  make  a  choice  amongst  so  many 
visions  combining  the  elements  of  terror  and  mystery,  but  two  may  be  men- 
tioned which  occurred  in  the  first  centuries  of  the  French  monarchy,  and 
which  are  very  celebrated.  First  that  of  King  Childeric,  who,  the  first  night 
of  his  marriage,  saw,  under  the  form  of  various  ferocious  animals,  the  whole 
future  of  his  race  ;  and  secondlj^,  that  of  a  hermit  in  the  island  of  Lipari,  who, 
at  the  very  hour  of  King  Dagobert's  death,  witnessed  in  his  sleep  a  deadly 
combat  between  the  demon  and  various  saints  who  were  fighting  for  the  pos- 
session of  his  soul  "over  one  of  the  s'ratins's  of  hell."  The  demons  were 
vanquished,  and  the  victors  carried  his  soul  up  to  heaven. 

In  every  page  of  the  ancient  chronicles  are  to  be  found  visions  and 
prodigies  of  a  similar  kind.  There  is  no  lack  of  phantoms  and  apparitions 
wherever  the  marvellous  can  be  brought  in ;  and  there  is  no  fact,  futile  as 
it  may  seem,  that  is  not  thought  to  deserve  some  supernatural  manifestation. 
As  a  general  rule,  a  vision  was  looked  upon  as  unlucky,  and  this,  no  doubt, 
15  the  origin  of  the  tradition,  according  to  which  a  spectre  always  appears 
to  announce  the  death  of  the  head  or  of  some  member  of  certain  illustrious 
families.  There  is  the  legend  of  the  fay  Mekisine  (Fig.  190),  which 
appeared,  uttering  loud  cries,  upon  the  donjon  of  the  Chateau  de  Lusignan, 
in  Poitou,  whenever  a  Lusignan  was  about  to  die.  But  this  legend  is  less 
terrible  than  that  of  the  canons  of  Mersburg,  in  Saxony,  for  it  was  said  that 
three  weeks  before  the  death  of  a  canon  a  strange  tumult  arose  at  midnight 
in  the  choir  of  the  cathedral,  and  a  grim  hand  appeared,  which  struck  with 
great  force  the  stall  of  the  canon  who  was  condemned  to  die.  The  guardians 
of  the  church  marked  this  stall  with  a  piece  of  chalk,  and  the  next  day  the 
canon,  warned  of  his  approaching  end,  prepared  for  death,  while  the  chapter 
made  every  preparation  for  his  obsequies. 

Visions  were  very  often  of  a  public  character,  and  caused  consternation 
throughout  a  whole  town  or  kingdom.  Pierre  Boaistuau,  Francois  de 
BeUeforest,  and  other  simple-minded  compilers  of  the  sixteenth  century,  have 
collected  in  one  volume  these  "Histoires  Prodigieuses,"  and  still  they  are 
far  from  having  exhausted  the  subject.  Thus,  to  cite  but  one  instance,  after 
having  predicted  the  nvunerous  prodigies  which  announced  the  calamities 
of  civil  war,  such  as  apparitions  in  the  heavens  of  fiery  dragons,  of  gigantic 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


^63 


bulls,  of  pigs  bearing  royal  crowns,  of  blood}'  stars,  of  multiform  rainbows, 
accompanied  by  several  moons  and  suns,  they  do  not  refer  to  the  strange 
noise  which  was  heard  in  the  air,  about  the  precincts  of  the  Louvre,  during 
the  seven  nights  which  followed  the  massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew,  a  concert 
of  cries,  groans,  and  screams,  mingled  with  furious  imprecations  and  blas- 
phemies, as  if  the  horror  of  the  massacre  was  being  renewed  in  the  invisible 


Fig.  190. — The  Fay  Melnsine,  horn  -whosr;  Flanlcs  springs  the  Genealogical  Tree  of  the  House  of 
Lusignan. — After  a  Wood  Encraving  of  the  "Romance  of  Melusine,"  Augsburg,  1480,  in 
quarto. — In  ihe  Lilirary  of  JI.  Ambroiso  Firmin-Didot,  Piiris. 


world.  It  may  bo  added  that  these  visions  were  in  many  instances  facts 
witnessed  by  thousands  of  people,  such  as  the  showers  of  blood,  of  stones, 
of  wheat,  and  of  frogs,  ordinarv  and  simple  jiliriiomcna  wliicli  were  not  at 
the  time  understood,  and  tlie  natural  origin  of  wliirli,  not  liininy  lieen 
a.scertaincd  by  the  learned,  did  iu)t,  of  course,  occur  to  the  public 


264 


POPULAR  BELIEFS. 


We  have  said  notliing  as  to  many  other  popular  superstitions,  traces  of 
which  still  exist,  such  as  the  use  of  magic  talismans,  amulets,  rings,  herbs, 
stones,  and  the  hair  of  animals  (see  chapter  on  Occult  Sciences),  for  an 
enumeration  of  them  would  merely  serve  to  display  the  ignorance  of  our 
ancestors,  over  which  it  is  better  that  we  should  draw  a  veil. 


Fi-.  191.— The  Siren.— Token  of  Gerard  Morrhy,  Printer  at  Paria  in  16.51. 


GEOGEAPHICAL    SCIENCE. 


Latin  and  Greek  Geographers. — Measurement  of  the  Roman  World. — Voyages  of  Hipp:ilus  and 
Diogenes.  —  Marinua  of  Tyre,  Pomponius,  Mela,  and  Ptolemy.  —  Coloured  and  Figuratve 
Itineraries. — Barbarian  Invasions. — Stephen  of  Byzantium. — Geographical  Ignorance  from 
the  Sixth  to  the  Tenth  Century. — Charlemagne  and  Albertus  Magnus. — Dicuil. — Geography 
amongst  the  Arabs.  —  Master  Peter  and  Roger  Bacon.  —  Vincent  of  Beauvais. — Asiatic 
Travellers  in  the  Thirteenth  Century. — Portuguese  Kavigation. — The  Planisphere  of  Fra 
Mauro. — First  Editions  of  Ptolemj'. — Maritime  Expeditions  in  the  Fifteenth  Century. — 
Christopher  Columbus  and  Amerigo  Vespucci. — Spanish,  Dutch,  and  French  Travellers,  &<;., 
in  the  Sixteenth  Century. 


HEAT  as  -waiS  the  progress  of  geographical 
knowledge  after  the  establishment  of  the 
Eonaan  criiijire,  still  greater,  in  contrast, 
were  its  decadence  and  disfavour  La  the 
early  jiart  of  the  Middle  Ages ;  that  is  to 
say,  in  the  beginning  of  the  fifth  century. 
Geography,  in  fact,  was  one  of  the  most 
useful  auxiliaries  of  the  aggressive  policy 
of  Rome,  directing  the  march  of  her  ex- 
peditions all  over  the  woi'ld,  and  cnaliUng 
her  to  accpiire  useful  knowledge  concern- 
ing the  countries  which  she  had  conquered.  It  may,  therefore,  be  said  that 
the  science  of  geography  was  in  general  practice  during  the  reign  of 
Augu.stufS.  A  perusal  of  the  principal  writers  of  that  period  is  sufficient  to 
show  how  widely  sjircad  were  the  general  notions  of  geographj^  in  a  society 
which,  being  well  versed  in  letters  and  highly  educated,  was  acquainted  with 
the  great  works  oi  the  ancient  Greek  geographers,  especially  those  of 
Eratosthenes  (270—194  li.c.)  and  I'olybius  (204 — 121  B.C.),  and  which  used 
Strabo's  Greek  Geography  as  a  manual  for  reading  the  Latin  historians  and 
poets,  and  as  a  guide-book  for  the  most  distant  provinces  of  the  empire. 
Poets    such    as   ^'irg^l,   Gvid,   JIanilius,    and   Lucan,    and   historians  such  as 


266  GEOGRAPHICAL  SCIENCE. 


Livy  and  Julius  Csesar,  were  also  geographers ;  and  Pliny  the  Elder  summed 
up,  in  his  four  books  of  "Natural  History,"  all  the  results  obtained  by 
geographical  research,  and  set  forth  in  a  number  of  works  no  longer  extant. 

Pliny  often  mentioned  in  his  "  Natural  History  "  the  geodesical  operation 
attributed  to  Marcus  Vipsanius  Agrippa,  prime  minister  and  son-in-law  of 
Augustus.  It  was  Julius  Csesar  who,  during  his  consulship  (according  to 
the  positive  assertion  of  Ethicus,  a  geographer  of  the  foiirth  century), 
"ordered  by  a  senatiis-conmUum  that  the  whole  Roman  world  should  be 
measured  by  men  of  the  greatest  ability  and  endowed  with  all  sorts  of 
knowledge."  This  vast  enterprise,  intrusted  to  four  Greek  mathematicians 
and  geographers,  Zenodoxus,  Theodotus,  Polyclitus,  and  Didymus,  who  had 
under  their  orders  a  staff  of  geodesical  measurers  and  land  surveyors,  was 
completed  in  twenty-five  years.  It  would  appear  that  Agrippa  took  the 
matter  in  hand,  and  when  it  was  completed  he  proposed  to  construct  at 
Rome  a  gigantic  portico,  beneath  which  he  intended  to  "  unfold  the  map 
of  the  world  before  the  eyes  of  the  universe,"  as  Pliny  expressed  it.  The 
premature  death  of  this  illustrious  general  prevented  the  execution  of  this 
grand  project,  but  the  map  of  the  Roman  world,  with  the  roads  and  distances 
indicated,  was  deposited  in  the  archives  of  the  Senate  (Fig.  192). 

Nor  was  the  progress  of  geography  assisted  by  the  victorious  armies 
alone,  for  the  travellers,  and  still  more  the  merchants,  whose  vessels,  even  at 
that  period,  conveyed  them  to  the  most  distant  parts  and  brought  back  cargoes 
from  the  ports  of  India,  did  much  towards  the  same  end.  Under  the  reign  of 
Nero,  two  centurions  were  sent  by  the  Emperor  to  Ethiopia  in  search  of  the 
sources  of  the  Nile,  and  this  expedition  is  alluded  to  by  Seneca  and  PUny. 
Previously  to  this,  during  the  reign  of  Claudius,  a  Greek  philosopher  of  Egypt, 
one  Hippalus,  had  struck  out  Avith  his  vessel  from  the  coast,  and  ventured 
across  the  high  seas,  starting  from  the  Gulf  of  Adulis  (Aden),  and  arriving 
upon  the  coast  of  India.  Another  traveller,  named  Diogenes,  was  driven  by 
north  winds  as  far  as  a  large  island  called  Menuthias,  otherwise  Zanzibar. 
From  this  time  forward  all  the  coast-line  was  marked  upon  the  marine  maps, 
but  the  Erythrean  Sea  (as  the  Indian  Ocean  was  then  called)  was  believed  to 
be  impassable  and  full  of  terrible  dangers,  though  more  than  one  Egyptian 
or  Phoenician  sailor  had  endeavoured  to  sail  across  it. 

One  of  these  experienced  pilots,  Marinus  of  Tyre,  carefully  collected  all 
the  geographical  information  which  he  could  gather  from  the  maritime  com- 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


267 


merce  of  Phoenicia  and  Egyjjt,  and  he  used  it  to  prepare  more  detailed  and 
correct  maps  than  were  at  that  time  in  use,  and  to  compose  a  book  of 
geograjjhy,  which,  though  no  longer  in  existence,  is  copied  from  by  Ptolemy. 
That  writer  says  of  him,  "  ]\Iarinus  of  Tyre,  the  latest  of  our  contemporaries 
who  has  cultivated  geographj^,  seems  to  have  done  it  to  some  purpose,  for 
it  is  evident  that  he  has  made  several  additions  to  the  former  knowledge 


Fig.  192. — Map  of  the  Roman  World. — Taken  from  tlie   "Liber  Guidonis." — Manuscript  dated 
1119  (No.  3,898).— In  the  Burgundy  Library,  Brussels. 


of  this  subject,  and  that  he  has  corrected  earlier  writings  which  contained 
errors  that  had  at  first  misled  him  as  well  as  others.  This  is  seen  very 
clearly  in  his  corrections  of  the  Geographical  Table."  Previously  to  Mariniis 
of  Tyre,  a  Roman  citizen,  Pomponius  Mela,  had  written  a  useful  treatise  on 
geography,  entitled,  "  De  Situ  Orbis,"  in  which  he  described  the  countries  of 
the  known  world,  following  the  circumference  of  the  seas,  and  beginning  with 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


the  Mediterranean ;  and  his  treatise,  which  formed  a  liuninons  and  rapid  sum- 
mary, was  one  of  the  handbooks  of  geographical  study  in  the  Middle  Ages. 

A  Greek  geometer,  named  Claudius  Ptolemasus,  born  at  Pelusa,  in  Lower 
Egypt,  who  was  at  the  famous  school  of  Alexandria  in  the  middle  of  the 
second  centmy,  formed  an  idea  of  writing  a  general  treatise  upon  Mathema- 
tical Geography  after  the  plan  traced  by  Hipparchus  in  the  year  125  B.C. 
He  had  prepared  himself  for  this  task  by  a  long  series  of  astronomical 
observations  and  calculations.  In  the  second  book  of  his  "  Almagest "  he 
wrote,  "  I  intend  to  mark  the  longitude  and  latitude  of  the  principal  towns 
of  each  country,  to  facilitate  the  calculation  of  the  celestial  phenomena 
which  occur  there.  I  shall  mark  by  how  many  degrees,  counting  from  the 
meridian,  each  of  these  towns  is  distant  from  the  equator,  and  I  shall 
also  compute,  in  degrees  counted  from  the  equator,  the  eastern  and  western 
distance  of  each  meridian  compared  with  that  which  passes  at  Alexandria,  for 
it  is  after  the  meridian  of  that  city  that  I  intend  to  reckon  those  of  the 
other  places  on  the  earth's  surface."  Ptolemagus  was  more  of  an  astronomer 
and  a  geometer  than  a  geographer ;  he  had  not  travelled  at  all,  and  had, 
therefore,  no  personal  experience,  while,  excepting  the  astronomical  part  of 
his  book,  he  merely  borrowed  from  his  predecessors  and  contemporaries  cos- 
mographic  materials  which  he  loosely  arranged  without  sequence  or  comment. 
The  best  features  in  his  work  are  what  he  borrowed  from  the  treatise  of 
Mariuus  of  Tyre,  and  he  says,  "  I  resolved  to  preserve  so  much  of  his  book  as 
does  not  require  correction,  and  to  throw  light,  by  means  of  the  most  recent 
information,  and  by  a  better  arrangement  of  the  places  on  the  maps,  upon 
the  obscure  poiats  of  his  treatise."  Ptolemseus  unfortunately,  while  preparing 
his  list  of  all  the  places  in  the  known  world,  making  eight  thousand  names, 
committed  the  most  glaring  errors,  owing  to  his  having  sought  to  fix  the 
latitude  and  longitude  of  the  localities  by  means  of  astronomical  observations. 

The  Geography  of  Ptolemajus,  written  in  Greek  (Fig.  193),  and  doubtless 
translated  simvdtaneously  into  Latin  for  the  use  of  persons  travelling  through 
the  Roman  empire,  was,  in  spite  of  his  faults  of  omission  and  commission, 
considted  as  being  the  most  usefid  guide-book  during  a  long  journey.  The 
coloured  maps  appended  to  it  were,  perhaps,  rectified  soon  afterwards,  upon 
new  itinerary  measurements  being  taken ;  for,  previously  to  Ptolemseus,  there 
existed  not  only  road  maps,  to  which  Vegetius  refers  in  his  treatise  on  the 
Art   of  War,  under   the   name   of   Ulnem  pida   (coloured  itineraries),  but 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


269 


itinera  adnotata  (annotated  itineraries),  upon  which  were  marked  the  day's 
marches.     It  was  one  of  these  figurative  itineraries  that  the  learned  Conrad 


Fig.  103. — Hap  of  the  Island  of  Sardinia. — I'leduccd  Fac-sitiiilo  of  a  Slap  of  the  Geography  of 
Ptolomious. — Grook  Manuscript  of  the  Twelfth  Century,  preserved  in  the  Jlouastcry  of 
Vatopedi,  Mount  Athos. 


Coltcs  discovered  in  a  monastery  of  Germany,  at  the  end  of  the  fifteenth 
centuiy,  and  which    liis    friend    I'cntinger   of  Augsburg   presented   to  the 


270  GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 

Imperial  Library  at  Yieima  (Fig.  194).  This  precious  document,  consisting 
of  twelve  maps  representing  the  world  as  it  was  known  in  the  third  century, 
forms,  so  to  sijeak,  the  explanatory  complement  of  the  tract  chart  of  the 
provinces  of  the  Roman  empire,  which  has  been  handed  down  to  us  under 
the  title  of  "Antonini  Augusti  Itinerarium,"  and  which  appears  to  have 
been  drawn  by  the  geographer  Ethicus  in  the  fourth  century. 

These  itineraries  and  maps,  which  were  sold  at  Rome  and  in  the  principal 
cities  of  the  empire,  and  which  must  haA^e  often  been  copied  as  they  passed 
from  hand  to  hand,  were  not,  in  all  probability,  foreign  to  the  continuous 
migration  of  the  barbarian  hordes  which  gradually  moved  upon  Italy 
from  the  different  parts  of  the  world,  and  systematically  followed  the  same 
method  in  order  to  reach  Rome.  These  invaders,  whether  coming  from  the 
North  like  the  Lombards,  the  Suevi,  the  Vandals,  and  the  Goths ;  from  the 
heart  of  Asia,  like  the  Huns  ;  or  from  the  steppes  of  Caucacus,  like  the  Alani 
or  the  Heruli,  had  long  been  kept  in  awe  by  the  Roman  legions ;  but,  when 
once  they  began  to  burst  the  barriers  and  to  advance  with  sagacious  caution 
through  the  Roman  provinces  which  they  ravaged  (Fig.  195),  it  was  easy  to 
see  that  they  had  selected  beforehand  the  territory  which  they  intended  to 
occupy,  by  the  way  in  which  they  created  frontiers  and  military  stations 
with  not  less  intelligence  than  boldness.  They  did  not  swerve  from  the 
route  which  they  had  traced  out,  and  paid  implicit  obedience  to  chiefs  who 
had  been  formed  in  the  schools  of  Athens  or  Alexandria. 

Thus  the  study  of  geography  was  apparently  fatal  to  the  empire,  because 
it  demonstrated  to  its  enemies  and  rivals  how  vuLuerable  its  very  vast- 
ness  made  it,  and  what  facilities  were  afforded  for  an  invasion  by  those 
splendid  military  roads  which  enabled  coimtless  hosts  to  arrive  by  easy  stages 
under  the  very  walls  of  Rome.  The  Emperors,  it  is  true,  endeavoured  for 
more  than  a  century  to  stem  the  tide  of  invasion,  and  it  is  not  unreasonable 
to  suppose  that  they  had  all  the  maps  and  itineraries  which  facilitated  the 
progress  of  the  invasion  destroyed.  The  teaching  of  geography  was  not, 
however,  neglected  in  the  schools,  for  the  historians  of  the  fourth  century, 
Claudianus,  Nemesianus,  and  Ausonius,  the  Emperor  Julian,  Ammianus 
MarceUinus,  and  Macrobius,  display  very  profound  geographical  knowledge, 
which  they  must  have  acquired  by  travel  and  study.  But  the  special  treatises 
on  geography  were  very  rare  at  this  period,  and  the  only  works  which  are 
kno^vn  to  have  escaped  a  destruction  which  we  may  assume  to  have  been  a 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


271 


planned   one   are  the  Latin   "  Cosmograpliy "  of    Ethicus  and  a  few  peripli 
(books  of  circumnavigation)  written  in  Greek. 

As  soon  as  the  invadino;  nations  had  formed  themselves  into  kingdoms 


vfe^'v*^ 


.-<v-^  .'■ 


Fig.  194.— Fragment  of  the  Map  of  Gaul.— lleducod  Fac-similo  of  Tentinger's  Map.— Manuscript 
of  the  Thirteenth  Centurj'. — In  the  Imperial  Library,  Vienna. 


upon  the  lloman  soil,  and  their  chiefs  had  become  kings  rivalling  the  CiTsars 
in  power,  geography  resumed  its  position  and  reasserted  its  usefulness. 
Thus  at   the  court  of  Theodore  the   Great,  IJocthius  and  Cassiodorus,  one 


272  GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 

born  at  Eome  and  tlie  otlier  in  Calabria,  botli  of  wbom  rose  to  the  highest 
dignities  in  the  new  kingdom  of  the  Ostrogoths,  combined  with  learning  of  a 
very  varied  kind  an  extensive  and  thorough  knowledge  of  geography,  which 
made  their  services  exceedingly  valuable.  Cassiodorus  has  disseminated  in  his 
"Letters  "  a  mass  of  valuable  information  and  of  interesting  remarks  concerning 
places,  men,  and  customs.  Boethius  himseK  translated  into  Latin  the  books  of 
Ptolemy,  so  as  to  put  them  within  the  reach  of  those  who  did  not  speak  Greek. 

In  the  pagan  schools  which  remained  open  at  Constantinople  and  through- 
out the  emjDire  of  the  East,  imtil  closed  by  Justinian  in  629,  were  taught, 
after  the  writings  of  Eratosthenes  and  Hipparchus,  of  Strabo  and  Ptolemy, 
both  cosmography  and  geography,  in  addition  to  simple  astronomy — this  latter 
as  a  guide  to  the  forecast  of  weather,  the  variations  of  the  atmosphere,  and 
navigation.  Stephen  of  Byzantium,  who  lived  in  the  sixth  century,  composed 
a  large  Dictionary  of  Geography,  of  which  all  that  remains  extant  is  a  dry 
and  useless  abridgment.  But  it  may  be  learnt  from  the  works  of  the  Greek 
historians  of  this  epoch,  especially  of  Procopiiis,  that  geographj^  was  con- 
sidered to  be  inseparable  from  history.  Thus  Procopius  and  his  successor, 
Agathias,  are  true  geographers.  We  meet  but  one  Latin  geographer  in  the 
sixth  century,  viz.  Vibius  Sequester,  who,  in  a  work  dedicated  to  the  nomen- 
clature of  rivers,  springs,  and  lakes,  seems  to  have  learnt  from  the  poets 
what  little  he  knew  upon  the  subject.  The  Christians  of  Africa  still 
read  Syriac  translations  of  the  Latin  and  Greek  works  on  geography  by 
Aristotle,  Ptolemy,  PHny,  Pomponius  Mela,  &c.,  which  had  been  studied 
after  the  original  texts  in  the  schools  of  Athens  and  Alexandria,  and  these 
Syriac  translations  were  afterwards  retranslated  into  Arabic,  when  the 
Caliphs,  successors  of  Mahomet,  had  founded  Mussidman  schools  in  the 
coimtries  which  they  occupied  and  conquered.  Very  naturally  geography 
must  have  had  a  special  attraction  for  a  warlike  people  which  aspired  to 
conquer  the  world,  and  to  propagate  throughout  it  the  religion  of  the  Koran. 

The  schools  of  Cordova  and  Toledo  in  Spain,  as  well  as  those  of  Bagdad 
and  of  Dschindesabour  in  Asia  Minor,  accordingly  remained  open  for 
geograiDhical  instruction  at  a  period  when  geography  was  no  longer  taught 
throughout  the  West,  which  was  at  that  time  plunged  in  barbarian  darkness. 

From  the  sixth  to  the  tenth  century  there  were  but  few  manuscripts 
which  escaped  destruction ;  all  the  coloured  maps  and  traced  itineraries  were, 
like  the  images,  ruthlessly  destroyed  by  the  iconoclasts.     The  only  remaining 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


m 


Fly.  l'J.5.— Aiiival  at  ('..l.igiic  ol  tlie  i'luet  of  Iho  Tyrant  Muxiums,  who  ri;vyltfj  i  gainst  tlio 
Homan  Emperor  Gratian.  Some  of  the  Vessels  conveyed  St.  Ursula  and  her  Companions  to 
the  number  of  eleven  thousand,  who  were  put  to  death  by  the  Barbarians  whom  the  Emjicror 
Gralian  had  dispatched  against  the  hostile  Fleet.— Fragment  of  the  "  Legend  of  St.  Ursula," 
painted  upon  the  Iteliquary  of  tliat  Saint,  at  Bruges,  by  J.  Memling  (Fifteenth  Cinlury). 

notions  of  C'osinogrii])liy  and  geofrraphy  dating  from  that  period  arc  to  bo 

N    N 


274 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


found  hidden  in  scholastic  encyclopcedias,  which,  like  the  ark  in  the  Deluge, 
float  here  and  there  amidst  the  abysses  of  ignorance.  In  addition  to  the 
encj'clopsedic  compilations  of  Martianus  Capella  (470)  and  Isidore  of  Seville, 
there  were  a  few  historians  who  took  some  interest  in  geography  :  the  historian 
of  the  Franks,  Gregory  of  Tours  (about  590),  the  historian  designated  as  the 
"  Anoujanous  of  Ravenna,"  and  the  historian  of  the  Lombards,  Paul  Warne- 
frid  (780).  There  can  be  no  doubt,  moreover,  that  Charlemagne  had  con- 
templated the  encouragement  of  the  teaching  of  geography,  when  this  science, 
not  then  regarded  as  a  handmaid  of  politics,  resumed  its  rank  at  the  Palatine 
School  directed  by  Alcuin,  who  included  it,  with  dialectics,  philosophy, 
astronomy,  and  arithmetic,  in  his  course  of  lessons.     Yet  it  was  only  a  very 


-r^ir 


T.rlo 


•A.   sf 


Fig.  196. — Brunehaut  superintending  the  making  of  the  Seven  Roads  which  led  from  the  City  of 
Bavay. — After  a  Miniature  in  the  "  Chroniqiies  de  Hainaut." — Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth 
Century. — In  the  Burgundy  Library,  Brussels. 


imperfect  and  elementary  science,  for  it  was  confined  to  the  theories  of 
Aristotle,  who  described  the  terrestrial  globe  as  being  9,000  leagues  in 
circumference  and  2,803  leagues  in  diameter,  Avhile  he  estimated  the  sea  to 
be  ten  times  greater  than  the  earth,  and  asserted  that  the  latter  was  1,400 
leagues  deep  from  the  surface  to  the  central  axis,  and  had  an  area  of 
5,000,713  square  leagues.  Based  upon  these  data,  mathematical  and  astrono- 
mical geography  could  not  be  other  than  a  chaos  of  erroneous  ideas  and 
misleading  traditions. 

The    genius   of   Charlemagne,   however,  extracted  therefrom  the  clever 
invention  of  the  cadastral  measurement,  the  germ  of  which  is  to  be  seen  in 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


27s 


the  Capitulary  La-^-s  of  the  great  Eraporor,  and  which  eventually,  under  the 
feudal  regime,  gave  the  geometrical  measure  of  the  area  of  the  soil,  while 
carefully  preserving  the  ancient  names  of  the  different  localities.  By  means 
of  this  descriptive  definition  of  the  limits  of  fiefs,  historical  geography 
recovered,  after  the  lapse  of  centuries,  all  the  topographical  details  of  the 
territory  of  the  Gauls  during  the  lifetime  of  Charlemagne  and  of  his  successors. 
The  historians  and  the  poets  of  this  period,  of  whom  but  a  few  are  known  to 
us,  do  not  give  much  infoiTaation  as  to  the  state  of  geographical  knowledge, 
which,  notwithstanding  the  schools  founded  by  Alcuin,  seems  to  have  been 


Fig.  197.— Seal  of  the  Town  of  Dunwich  (Thirteenth  Century). 

very  scanty.  But  it  is  probable  that  the  knowledge  of  geograpliy  was  much 
more  advanced  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  for  Alcuin  was  educated  in  the 
monasteries  of  those  countries,  as  also  were  St.  Columba,  St.  Gall,  Theodore, 
Archbishop  of  Canterlniry,  Scotus  Erigena,  and  other  savants  who  came  to 
France,  where  they  founded  monasteries  and  establislied  chairs  for  tcachin"- 
the  sciences,  and  geography  was  always  given  a  place  in  llicir  programmes. 
There  was  the  more  need  for  its  cultivation  in  England,  as  it  was  very  useful 
to  the  traders  and  fishermen  of  the  ancient  port  of  Uunwicli  (Fig.  \\)1),  in  the 
North  Sea. 


276  GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


Alfred  the  Great,  King  of  the  Anglo-Saxons  (849 — 901),  who,  like 
Charlemagne,  ■was  a  sovereign  of  great  organizing  powers,  took  a  special 
interest  in  these  studies,  and  set  an  example  to  his  subjects  by  making  him- 
self acquainted,  with  a  view  to  developing  the  fisheries  and  trade,  with  the 
islands  and  coasts  washed  by  the  Baltic  and  the  North  Seas.  Two  travelling 
traders,  one  a  Dane  named  Wolfstan,  the  other  a  Norwegian  named  Other, 
wrote  an  account  of  their  maritime  explorations.  Wolfstan  had  explored  the 
Baltic  coast,  and  Other  had  navigated  to  the  polar  seas  by  way  of  the  coasts  of 
Norway  and  of  Lapland.  Alfred  the  Great,  who  translated  into  Saxon  the 
"  Universal  History  "  by  Orosius,  written  in  the  fifth  century,  added  to  it,  from 
the  accounts  given  by  Wolfstan  and  Other,  the  description  of  an  immense 
extent  of  country  which  the  Romans  had  but  caught  a  glimpse  of  athwart 
the  miraculous  stories  of  a  few  sailors  who  had  sought  to  reach  the  mysterious 
island  of  Thule  (Iceland),  which  was  looked  upon  as  the  extreme  limit  of  the 
habitable  globe.  It  was  owing  to  him  that  there  were  prepared  pilots'  charts, 
to  enable  fishermen  to  exercise  their  industry  in  the  remote  regions  of  the 
Norwegian  continent  (Figs.  198  and  199),  and  to  establish  a  carrying  trade 
with  all  the  ports  of  the  Baltic.  Geography,  in  England  as  in  Germany, 
consisted  at  that  time  of  a  few  rudimentary  but  jJractical  notions.  Thus  a 
canon  of  Bremen  composed,  in  1067,  a  brief  description  of  Denmark,  under 
the  pretentious  title  of  "  Geographia  Scandinavise  ;  "  while,  two  hundred  years 
before,  an  Irish  monk,  Dicuil,  wrote  a  regular  treatise  on  general  geography 
entitled,  "  De  Mensura  Orbis"  (Concerning  the  Extent  of  the  Universe) 
borrowed  from  the  Latin  writers,  Pliny,  Solinus,  Orosius,  and  Priscian, 
supplement  3d  by  some  novel  remarks  upon  the  northern  countries.  But  this 
treatise,  though  it  contains  an  accovmt  as  to  the  discover}^  of  Iceland  and 
other  interesting  facts  in  contemjiorary  history  which  the  monks  had 
imparted  to  the  author,  also  contained  several  errors,  but  little  in  the  way  of 
commentary.  For  instance,  Dicuil  divides  the  world  into  three  parts, 
Europe,  Asia,  and  Libya,  in  which  latter  he  places  the  source  of  the  Nile,  not 
far  from  the  Atlantic,  in  the  mountains  of  Mauritania. 

There  are  doubtless  but  few  geographical  works  during  the  tenth  and 
eleventh  centuries  which  place  the  theory  of  the  science  in  a  reliable  form, 
but  it  may  be  taken  as  certain  that  geography  itseK  was  taught  wherever 
education  existed.  The  Greek  schools  in  the  empire  of  the  East  could  not 
afford  to  neglect  a  study  which  was  inseparable  from  that  of  history  and  of 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIEXCE. 


277 


philosopliy,  and  geography  even  became  an  essential  part  of  polities,  as  is  to 
be  learnt  from  the  treatise  composed  by  the  Emperor  Constantine  Porjihyro- 
genetes  for  the  education  of  his  son,  and  which  bore  the  title  of  ''  De 
Administratione  Imperii."  This  book,  written  in  the  middle  of  the  tenth 
centmy,  is,  in  reality,  a  geographical  work,  containing  a  very  complete 
description  of  Eastern  Europe  and  of  a  part  of  Asia.  Many  cosmographical 
books,  descriptions  of  travels  or  of  embassies,  were  written  in  Greek  during 
the  eleventh  and  the  twelfth  centuries,  but  they  have  not  been  published. 
The  nimierous  writers  of  the  history  of  Byzantium  describe  the  peoples  and 


Figs.  198  and  199. — Navigators  who  have  mistaken  a  Whale's  Back  for  an  Island  seating  them- 
selves upon  it  to  cook  their  food.  The  Whale,  feeling  the  fire,  plunges  to  the  hottom,  and  the 
Vessel  narrowly  escapes  being  wrecked. — Miniature  from  the  "  Bestiaire  d' Amour,"  by  Richard 
Fumival. — Manuscript  of  the  Tenth  Century. — In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot, 
Paris. 


states  in  other  jDarts  of  Europe  with  a  degree  of  accuracj'  and  detail  which 
testifies  to  their  being  well  versed  in  geography. 

It  was  in  Islam  that  the  best  geographers  of  that  time  were  to  bi^  found. 
The  ilahometan  mind  had  from  the  first  taken  to  the  study  of  geography, 
which  made  immense  progress  after  the  eighth  century  in  all  the  Arab  schools. 
The  Caliph  Al-Mamoun,  son  of  Ilaroun  Al-l!ascbid,  was  iiutcd  for  his  pre- 
dilection in  favour  of  this  science,  and  he  translated  into  Arabic  the  Geo- 
graphy of  Ptolemacus,  adding  to  it  illuminated  maps,  which  latter  fact  .showed 
that  Ptolemsous's  original  maps  had  either  been  lost  or  were  not  re23roduced 


278 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


ill  the  Syriac  translation.  From  the  reign  of  Al-Mamoun  the  Arabs  measured 
an  arc  of  the  meridian  in  order  to  calculate  the  size  of  the  earth,  and  to  rectify 
the  calculations  of  Ptolemteus  as  to  the  measure  of  the  degree  of  each  of  the 
large  circles  which  were  supposed  to  intersect  the  earth  at  intervals  of  66| 
miles.  The  conquests  of  the  Arabs,  their  trade  by  land  and  sea,  and,  above 
aU,  their  religious  pilgrimages  to  Mecca,  served  at  once  to  enrich  their  store 
of  knowledge  both  as  to  astronomical,  physical,  and  political  geography. 
They  brought  from  China  the  compass,  with  which  the  Chinese  had  been 
acquainted  from  time  immemorial,  and  the  use  of  it  at  sea  unquestionably 
led  to  a  total  and  almost  immediate  revolution  in  the  science  of  geography. 
The  Arabs  possessed  in  the  tenth  century  two  learned  geographers,  Ibn- 


Fig.  200. — "  How  Alexander  did  battle  with  the  Beast  which  is  very  formidable  and  has  three 
Horns."— Miniature  from  a  Manuscript  of  the  Thirteenth  Century  (No.  11,040).— In  th3 
Burgundy  Library,  Brussels. 


Haukal  and  Masoudi,  both  natives  of  Bagdad.  The  first  wrote  a  geographical, 
political,  and  statistical  description  of  the  Empire  of  the  Caliphs,  in  the  pre- 
face to  which  he  said,  "  I  have  collected  all  the  information  which  has  made 
of  geography  a  science  interesting  to  men  of  all  degree."  Masoudi  intro- 
duced into  a  large  encyclopaBdic  work  entitled  "Akhbar  al  Zeman  "  (the 
News  of  the  Time)  all  the  documents  which  he  had  collected  during  twenty- 
five  years'  travels  through  Asia  and  Africa ;  but  it  would  appear  that  this 
work  has  been  lost,  and  all  that  remains  is  an  abridgment  made  by  the 
author  himself  under  the  title  of  "  Golden  Prairies,"  and  which  itself  fills 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


279 


eight  volumes.  ^Masoudi  deserves  to  be  surnamed  the  Pliiij'  of  the  East.  A 
great  number  of  works  on  geograjihy  in  the  Arab  literature  of  the  Middle 
Ages  might  be  cited,  the  best  known  of  which  is  that  by  Edrisi,  a  Spanish 
Arab,  who  wrote  his  book  at  the  court  of  Roger,  King  of  Sicily,  in  11 04.  It 
was  for  this  prince,  a  friend  of  letters  and  sciences,  that  Edrisi  constructed  an 
armillarjf  sphere  and  a  terrestial  planisphere  in  silver.  (See  the  chapter  on 
Occult  Sciences.) 

The  example  of  the  Arabs  was  not  without  its  influence  iijjon  the  renais- 
sance of  geographical  science  in  Europ)e,  when  the  Crusades  made  a  knowledge 
of  geography  indispensable.  First  of  all,  it  was  necessary  to  stud}'  all  the 
routes  leading  to  Jerusalem,  to  prepare  itineraries  and  tract  charts  for  the 


Fig.   201.— "II(j\v   Alexander  ili.l    Ijattle  with  White   Liona  bi?  as  Bulls     —"Mm  it  11      tr  in    i 
Manuscript  of  the  Thirteenth  Century  (No.  11,010). — In  the  Burgund)  Lil  ru),  Brussels 


cnisaders ;  and  in  these  new  and  unknown  lands,  into  which  eagci'  iimltitudrs 
were  about  to  penetrate,  there  was  nothing  to  guide  them  save  tlio  untrust- 
worthy descriptions  of  the  ignorant  pilgrims  who  from  the  fifth  century 
had  undertaken  the  laborious  task  of  visiting  the  holy  places.  Tliis  led  to  an 
improved  study  of  geography  in  the  schools  of  the  AVcst  ;  and  in  the  monas- 
teries, each  of  which  had  its  library,  tlic  monks  set  to  work  at  copying  tlie 
writings  of  the  early  geographers,  such  as  Strabo,  I'ausanias,  and  I'olybius, 
I'liny,  l*omponius  Mela,  Solinus,  and  Ethicus.  These  authors  were  expounded, 
commentated,  and  compared  with  the  less  ancient  and  ahuost  conteuipcirary 
writers.  The  famous  Abbey  of  Monte  Casino,  in  the  kingdom  of  Naples,  was  at 
that  time  one  of  the  principal  centres  of  geographical  lore.    Numerous  ^jilgrims 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


who  went  to  or  returned  from  Palestine  lialted  for  a  day  at  this  abbey, 
where  they  were  received  with  the  greatest  hospitality,  and  told  the  story  of 
their  travels  and  adventures  (Figs.  200  and  201)  to  their  learned  hosts.  It 
was  here  that  Constantino  the  African,  one  of  the  lights  of  the  school  of 
Salerno,  retired,  after  having,  when  he  left  the  schools  of  Alexandria  and 
Bagdad,  travelled  through  Egypt  and  Asia  for  twenty-nine  j^ears.  His 
wonderful  lore  earned  him  the  reputation  of  a  sorcerer,  but  the  Due  de 
Pouille,  Robert  Guiscard,  whose  secretary  he  was,  protected  him,  and  he  was 
able  to  continue  imdisturbed  his  medical  and  geographical  works  in  a  retreat 
where  his  curious  descriptions  of  the  countries  beyond  the  sea  lighted  up  the 
hours  of  repose  and  recreation  which  the  monks  of  St.  Benedict  were  allowed 
to  snatch  from  their  labours  and  prayers. 

The  University  of  Paris  was  not  yet  founded,  but  the  ecclesiastical 
schools  already  flourished  in  the  capital  as  well  as  in  all  the  important 
cities  which  had  their  bishop.  The  teaching  of  geography  was  limited 
at  that  time  to  a  few  rudiments,  all  more  or  less  erroneous,  and  it  was  in 
the  Latin  classic  poets,  such  as  Virgil,  Horace,  and  Ovid,  that  students  got 
some  idea  of  the  facts  relating  to  descriptive  geography.  Nothing  can  prove 
more  clearly  the  ignorance  which  then  prevailed  as  to  the  shape  of  the  globe 
than  the  rough  designs  which  are  to  be  met  with  in  a  few  manuscripts  of  the 
eleventh  century,  the  authors  of  which  could  never  have  seen  Ptolemy's 
Geography.  The  geographical  descriptions  which  occur  in  some  of  the 
poetry  of  the  time  were  much  nearer  the  truth,  for  the  poets  of  the  eleventh 
and  twelfth  centuries,  such  as  Ausonius  and  Venantius  Fortuuatus,  wrote 
of  countries  and  places  which  they  had  seen.  It  was  in  this  way  that 
Marbodius,  Bishop  of  Rennes,  who  died  in  1123,  sketched  in  his  didactic 
poetry  the  geography  of  Brittany,  giving  it  a  picturesque  character  quite 
in  harmony  with  nature. 

There  were,  however,  some  few  men  of  genius  to  whom  the  general  study 
of  science  had,  even  at  that  period,  opened  the  arcana  of  astronomical  and 
philosophical  geography.  Such  was  the  master  of  Roger  Bacon,  that  man  of 
learning  whose  real  name  is  not  written  in  the  works  of  his  illustrious  pupil, 
and  who  appears  to  have  been  one  Mehairicourt,  a  native  of  Picardy.  Roger 
Bacon  always  speaks  of  him  as  Mader  Peter.  Philosopher,  mathematician, 
and  geographer,  he  had  travelled  in  Europe  and  Asia  before  coming  to  Paris, 
where  he  taught  Roger  Bacon,  about  1230,  that  which  no  other  teacher  had 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


the  power  to  impart  to  him.     He  had  constrvicted  a  sphere  which  imitated 
the  motion  of  the  hea\-ens,  and  it  was  through  tlie  intermediary  of  astronomy 


and    niathcmalicH    (liat    ho    grapjilnl    with    llic    iriosl     aiduoiis    (|ucsli()iis    nf 
g('Orrra])liy.        Itcigcr   liacoii,   in   llir  Comllj    |);ii'(    ^^i   his  ■' Opus   .M.ijiis,"  (levelled 


GEOGRAPHICAL  SCIENCE. 


almost  entirely  to  the  description  of  tke  eartli,  doubtless  transcribed  witbout 
change  the  lessons  which  he  had  received  from  Master  Peter ;  but  he  notes 
the  errors  of  the  ancient  geographers,  refutes  the  opinions  of  Pliny  and  ^ 
Ptolemy,  and  brings  forward  a  host  of  fresh  problems  which  science  did  not 
solve  till  long  after  his  time.  Not  only  did  he  describe  very  accurately 
reo-ions  not  vet  known  and  scarcely  hinted  at,  but  he  further  maintained 
that  Africa  extended  very  far  south,  that  it  had  inhabitants  the  other  side  of 
the  equator,  that  the  temperature  of  the  pole  was  endurable,  that  the  Indian 
Ocean  washed  the  southern  coasts  of  the  Asiatic  continent,  and  that  the  earth 
was  ten  times  more  thickly  peopled  than  was  believed  to  be  the  case. 

At  the  time  Bacon  committed  to  paper,  under  Master  Peter's  dictation, 

these  ingenious  theories  which  changed  the  face  of  geographical  knowledge, 

Albertus  Magnus  was  propounding  to  attentive  audiences  niunbered  by  the 

thousand,  from  his  chair  in  the  University  of  Paris,  a  system  of   geography 

stripped  of  all  commentaries,  and  teeming  with  errors  which  he  did  not  erase 

when  he  embodied  his  public  lessons  in  a  treatise  entitled  "  DeNatura  Locorum." 

Eoger  Bacon  appreciated  in  the  following  tei-ms  the  utility  and  main 

object  of  a  science  which  was  still  groping  its  way  in  the  dark  : — "  Geography, 

like  astronomy  and  chronology,  has  its  roots  in  mathematics,  inasmuch  as  it 

must  repose  upon  the  measurement  and  shape  of  the  inhabited  globe,  and  on 

the  precise  determination  of  latitudes  and  longitudes.     But  the  carelessness 

of  the  Christian  peoples  is  such  that  they  do  not  know  one-half  of  the  globe 

which  they  inhabit.      Yet  the  first  important   points  to  be  settled  are  the 

measurement  of  the  earth,  the  determining  of  the  position  of  towns  (Fig. 

202)  and  of  cormtries,  and  the  adoption  of  a  fixed  degree  for  the  longitudes, 

starting  from  the  western  extremity  of  Spain  to  the  eastern  extremity  of 

India.     This  immense  work  can  only  be  accomplished  under  the  auspices  of 

the  Holy  Apostolic  See,  or  of  a  monarch  who  would  imdertake  aU  the  costs 

of  the  enterprise,  by  remirnerating  the  savants  employed  upon  it.     Moreover, 

it  is  impossible  to  form  an  opinion  of  men  imless  one  knows  what  climate 

they  inhabit,  for  if  the  products  of  the  animal  and  vegetable  kingdoms  are 

dependent  upon  the  climate,  how  much  more  must  this  be  the  case  with  the 

manners,  the  character,  and  the  constitutions  of  peoples  !"     Thus  we  see  that 

Roger  Bacon's  sagacity  and  spirit  of  intviition  enabled  him  to  anticipate  by 

five  centuries  the  philosophical  residts  of  modern  science. 

The  thirteenth  century  could  not  but  restore  geography  to  its  place  of 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE.  283 


honour,  when  the  Crusades  were  taking  so  many  people  to  the  East,  and  ^vhcn 
the  development  of  classical  study,  favoured  by  the  ardour  of  the  students 
who  flocked  to  the  schools  of  the  Paris  University,  fostered  a  taste  for 
encyclopaedias  edited  upon  the  same  plan  as  Pliny's  "Xatural  History." 
Geography  was  destined  to  occupy  a  pennancnt  place  in  these  Mist  compila- 
tions, and  Vincent  of  Beauvais,  who,  by  order  of  St.  Louis,  had  intended  to 
present,  in  a  voluminous  compilation  entitled  "Speculum  ^lajus,"  the  com- 
pendium of  the  scientific,  historical,  and  philosophical  information  of  his 
time,  instead  of  merely  putting  together  all  the  documents  and  systems  which 
antiquity  furnished  him  with  concerning  the  history  of  geography  and  the 
description  of  the  universe,  sought  out  the  traveUers  who  had  A-isited  the 
countries  which  he  intended  to  describe,  and  so  obtained  fresh  information, 
which,  unfortunately,  he  failed  to  get  revised  by  a  competent  critic.  Xever- 
theless,  his  book  is  a  valuable  one,  and  he  deserves  great  praise  for  his 
"Speculum  Naturale,"  in  which  he  treats  of  the  position  of  the  skies,  of 
cosmography  and  geography,  citing  not  more  than  a  dozen  Latin  authors. 

From  this  period  the  accounts  of  travellers  in  Upper  Asia  enabled  the 
inhabitants  of  Europe  to  form  more  accurate  and  extensiA-e  notions  con- 
cerning this  part  of  the  world.  The  story  of  Prester  John,  alluded  to 
in  the  previous  chapter,  was  the  principal  cause  of  these  travels,  and  Pope 
Innocent  IV.  and  Louis  IX.  both  detennined  to  ascertain  what  truth  there 
was  in  these  travellers'  tales.  The  Pope  accordingly  sent  two  missions  into 
Asia;  one  confided  to  monks  of  the  Franciscan  order,  the  other  to 
Dominicans.  The  first  proceeded  to  Mongolia,  and  the  second  to  Persia 
and  Armenia.  The  story  of  the  first  mission  was  written  by  Brother  John 
de  Piano  Cai-pini,  who  arrived  with  his  companions  upon  the  banks  of  the 
Volga.  The  embassy  sent  to  the  Great  Khan  of  Tartary  by  St.  Louis  a 
few  years  later  was  of  greater  service  to  geogi-aphical  "sc^icnce,  and  the 
Flemish  Franciscan  monk,  liuysbroeck,  generally  called  Rubruquis,  gave 
many  interesting  details  in  the  account  which  he  wrote  as  to  distant  countries 
of  which  ho  could  not  ascertain  even  the  name.  Yet  for  an..lher  two 
centuries  the  existence  of  Prester  John  was  generally  believed  in. 

Another  traveller,  Marco  Polo  the  Venetian,  who,  soon  after  Rubruciuis 
and  John  de  Piano  Carpini,  went  to  seek  his  fortune  in  Tartary,  and  who 
for  twenty  years  held  a  high  post  at  the  court  of  the  Great  Khan,  availed 
himself  of  his  residence  and  of  his  excursions  in  Asia  to  colled  a  mass  of 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE, 


valuable  notes  about  tbe  geography  of  tlie  countries  which  he  inhabited  for 
such  a  long  time.  TJj)on  his  return  to  his  country  in  1298,  he  dictated  an 
account  of  his  journej's  to  a  romance-writer,  one  Ru.stician  of  Pisa,  who  took 
them  down  in  French  eight  years  before  Marco  Polo  had  them  written  in 
Italian.  This  account,  valuable  and  truthful  notwithstanding  the  great 
credulity  of  the  author,  contained  the  fullest  and  best  description  which  then 
existed  of  Tartary,  Mongolia,  Cathaj'  or  China,  and  other  parts  of  Central 
Asia,  and  was,  so  to  speak,  the  first  effort  of  picturesque  geography.  Marco 
Polo  found  many  imitators,  but  none  of  them  equalled  him.  Travellers  ia 
Asia  up  to  the  fifteenth  centurj-  consisted  almost  entirely  of  Franciscan  or 
Dominican  monks,  amongst  whom  may  be  mentioned  Ricoldi  of  Monte 
Croce,  John  of  Monte  Corvino,  Oderic  of  Frioul,  and  John  of  Marignola  ;  but 
the  most  famous  of  all  was  an  Englishman,  John  de  Mandeville,  who,  from 
1-322  to  1356,  explored  nearly  the  whole  of  the  known  world  for  the  mere 
pleasure  of  travelling,  and  who,  after  a  pilgrimage  to  the  Holy  Land 
(Fig.  203),  explored  part  of  Africa  and  nearly  the  whole  of  Asia.  The 
story  of  his  travels,  written  in  English,  teems  with  stories  which  do  not 
sajr  much  for  his  judgment  or  powers  of  discrimination.  Several  travellers, 
who  had  seen  fewer  countries,  displayed  better  powers  of  observation  and 
more  knowledge  of  geography',  amongst  them  being  Bertrandon  de  la 
Brocquiere,  a  Burgundian  gentleman,  who  was  one  of  the  last  to  start  with 
the  pilgrim's  staff  for  Jerusalem. 

ihe  caravan  travellers  seem  to  have  stimulated  the  eners-ies  of  travellers 

o 

by  sea,  and  hydrography  took  its  place  beside  geography.  The  first  navi- 
gators who  explored  the  western  coasts  of  Africa  were  Portuguese.  In  the 
beginning  of  the  fourteenth  century  (in  1315),  Alonzo  Gonzales  Baldaya 
advanced  as  far  as  Cape  Bojador,  almost  within  sight  of  the  Canary  Islands. 
The  island  of  Madeira,  which  an  Englishman,  Masham,  caught  sight  of  in 
1344,  was  not  positively  discovered  till  1417  by  Gonzales  Zarco,  who  took 
possession  of  it  on  behalf  of  his  master,  John  I.,  King  of  Portugal.  That 
king's  son.  Prince  Henry,  surnamed  the  Navigator,  was  passionately  fond  of 
maritime  exploration,  and  devoted  forty-eight  years  of  his  life  to  it.  The 
object  of  his  expeditions  was  not  merely  to  discover  new  countries  rich  in 
gold,  and  offering  fresh  opportunities  for  commerce ;  but,  in  trying  to  reach 
the  equator,  this  enlightened  prince  had  mainly  in  view  the  increase  of 
geographical  knowledge.     The  Canary  Islands  were  already  known,  and  the 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


^8S 


King  of  Castile's  flag  had  floated  there  since  1345,  but  the  Portuguese 
expeditions  advanced  as  far  as  the  mouth  of  Rio  Gi-ande,  and  founded 
establishments  at  the  islands  off  Cape  Yerde.  In  these  successive  exf)lora- 
tions,  which  lasted  half  a  century,  under  the  leadership  of  Gil  Eanes  (144"2), 
of  Nuno  Tristam  (1443),  of  Alvaro  Fernandez  (1448),  and  of  Cadaraosto 
(1454 — 56),  hj'drographic  surveys  had  been  made  of  about  a   third  of  the 


Fig.  203.— John  de  Mandeville,  a  celebrated  English  Traveller,  taking  leave  of  King  Edward  III., 
before  his  Departure  for  "beyond  the  Si  as."— Miniature  from  the  "  llerveiUes  du  Monde." 
— Manuscript  of  the  early  part  of  the  Fifteenth  Century.— In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


African  coast,  as  far  as  the  groat  .South  Cape.  After  the  death  of  Prince 
Henry,  Joao  de  Santarem  and  Pedro  de  Escalona,  who  had  explored  the 
Guinea  coast  in  1471,  crossed  the  line  and  opened  up  the  navigation  of  the 
southern  hemisphere.  In  1484  Diego  Cam  reached  the  sixth  degree  of 
southern  latitude  at  the  mouth  of  the  Zaire,  and  two  years  later  Bartholomew 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


Diaz,  who  had  ventured  out  into  the  ocean,  which  was  still  called  the 
Impenetmble  Sea  and  the  Dark  Sea,  perceived  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  or 
Stormy  Cape,  at  the  extreme  end  of  Africa. 

These  African  islands  and  coasts  had  already  been  frequented,  for  in  1471, 
when  the  Portuguese  landed  in  Guinea,  they  were  much  surprised  to  find 
there  a  French  trading  depot  called  Le  Petit  Dieppe,  which  sailors  from 
Dieppe  had  founded  a  century  before.  These  were  the  same  men  who  knew 
of  the  existence  of  North  America  a  century  before  Christopher  Columbus 
discovered  the  Antilles.  Moreover,  in  1395,  the  fleet  of  the  brothers  Zeno, 
freighted  at  Venice  by  the  traders,  had  crossed  the  Atlantic  under  the 
guidance  of  a  Dieppe  pilot,  who  pointed  out  to  it  the  northern  coast  of 
America ;  but  all  these  discoveries,  due  to  commercial  enterprise  and  the  love 
of  gain,  and  achieved  by  daring  adventurers,  were  in  no  way  useful  to  science, 
for  they  were  kept  secret  when  they  were  likely  to  be  beneficial  to  some 
branch  of  maritime  commerce,  while  no  importance  was  attached  to  them 
when  they  resulted  in  no  material  gain.  It  was  not  until  the  fifteenth 
century  that  navigators  began  to  write  an  account  of  their  voyages,  or  to  have 
them  recorded  by  the  cosmographers  who  were  generally  to  be  found  on 
board.  But  these  records  were  either  kept  secret  or  were  shown  to  only  a 
very  few  people,  as  the  navigators  looked  upon  them  as  property  over  which 
it  was  necessary  to  keep  close  watch.  Thus  the  curious  voyage  of  Cadamosto, 
"  Prima  Navigatione  alle  Terre  de'  Negri  "  (First  Navigation  to  the  Land  of 
Negroes),  did  not  appear  until  1507. 

These  travels  were  more  useful  to  map-makers  than  to  geographers,  for 
every  traveller  and  navigator  found  a  map  indispensable,  and  after  making 
one  for  himself,  he  added  to  it  the  result  of  his  own  discoveries.  Previously 
to  the  fourteenth  century  maps  were  very  scarce,  and  those  which  did  exist 
were  faulty  and  incomplete.  The  oldest  general  map  of  the  world  dating 
from  the  Middle  Ages  is  that  which  Marino  of  Venice  presented  to  Pope 
John  XXII.  in  1321.  This  map,  which  appears  to  be  an  imitation  of  the  Arab 
maps,  is  nothing  more  than  a  picture  in  which  the  relative  position  of  places  and 
countries  is  given  almost  hap-hazard,  without  any  sign  of  parallels  or  meridians. 
A  hundred  and  forty  years  later,  a  Camaldulan  monk,  Fra  Mauro,  painted  upon 
the  wall  of  one  of  the  rooms  in  his  monastery,  in  the  isle  of  Murano,  near 
Venice,  an  immense  planisphere,  in  which  he  grouped  all  the  kno\TO  geographical 
facts  of  his  time.      The  first  marine  maps,  drawn  by  Italian,  Portuguese,  or 


GEOGRA  PHICA  L   SCIEXCE. 


Spanish  pilots,  are  not  of  an  earKer  date  than  Marino's  map  of  the  world, 
but  they  were  very  niunerous  in  the  following  century.  These  charts,  ■\\hich 
are  as  a  ride  remarkable  for  the  excellence  of  their  drawing,  are  wonderfully 
accurate,  and  often  contain  allusions  to  celebrated  sea  voyages,  together  with 


117   I  119  I  ii;^   I   no  I  111  I  11^1  i:^  I  \r>!.  |  iiC,  |  irfi  |  in  j  iisj  iio  |   ^o  |  ni  |  i;z  |  H)  |  l^ji.  |  i^i; 


I'^^ifflru] 


C30 


\nteapToIianam  ctoiiesdi. 
rafncntioniinatrj&unturtice  lum  -^ 


d 


INDlCVAA. 


[Carols' I 


[pl?ilemsj 


\CaUrt6*^rual 


'i04. — 3Iap  of  the  Island  of  Taprobana. — Reduced  Fac-simile  of  a  Jlap  in  Ptolemy's 
Geography,  in  the  Latin  Edition  of  1492  (TIlm,-e,  per  Leonardum  Hoi),  offered  by  Nicholas 
Germain  to  Pope  Paul  II. — In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


references  which  enable  the  reader  to  follow  the  jjhascs  of  these  vovages  in 
chronological  order,  and  to  ascertain  their  results.  It  may  safely  be  said  tluit 
every  pilot  was  capable  of  drawing  for  himself  a  very  minute  coast  chart  of 
iill  the  seas  in  which  he  navigated. 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


This  abundance  of  charts  and  maps,  especially  in  coimtries  which 
possessed  a  navy,  exi^lains  how  it  was  that  copper  engraved  maps  were  almost 
contemporaneous  with  printing  in  movable  tj'pe,  which  was  invented  in  1440, 
but  kept  a  secret  by  the  town  of  Mayenne  until  1466.  The  first  edition 
of  Ptolemy's  Cosmography  was  printed  in  folio  at  Yicenza,  by  Hermann 
Levilapis  of  Cologne,  in  1462  ;  but  this  edition  had  no  maps.  Nicholas 
Denis  the  Benedictine  had,  however,  composed  for  Ptolemy's  book  maps 
which  were  engraved  on  copper  \ys  Andrea  Benincasa.  But  in  the  mean- 
while a  new  set  of  maps,  also  intended  for  Ptolemy's  book,  was  admirably 
drawn  by  the  printer,  Conrad  SwejTiheym,  the  associate  of  Pannartz,  who 
had  removed  his  presses  to  Rome  ;  and  these  maps,  numbering  twenty-seven, 
in  which  the  letters  were  stamped  with  jewellers'  punches  and  hammered, 
were  completed  by  the  Alsacian  Arnold  Biickinck,  to  illustrate  the  edition  of 
Ptolemy  which  was  printed  at  Pome  under  the  superintendence,  so  far  as 
the  letterjjress  was  concerned,  of  Domitius  Calderini,  and  which  appeared 
in  1478.  Other  editions,  with  maps  engraved  on  wood  and  coloured  with  the 
paint-brush,  appeared  in  succession  in  Italy  and  German}'  (Fig.  204).  The 
Greek  text  of  Ptolemy  was  carefully  re^ased  bj'  the  geographers,  who  sought 
to  amend  and  interpret  it,  in  order  to  improve  the  Latin  translation,  which 
was  continually  being  reprinted  bj^  the  thousand ;  for  the  Greek  text  was  not 
printed  until  1533. 

The  publication  of  the  Latin  translation  of  Ptolemy  was  followed  by  that 
of  several  ancient  geographers,  and  these  primitive  editions  testified  to  the 
sjTupathy  of  the  lettered  piiblic  for  geographical  science.  The  Popes  Paul  II. 
and  Sixtus  IV.  gladly  accepted  the  dedication  of  the  editions  which  Conrad 
Swejmhejan  and  Arnold  Pannartz  printed  at  Pome.  Strabo,  translated  into 
Latin,  appeared  in  1469  ;  Pliny  in  1473 ;  Solinus,  at  Milan,  in  1471,  and  at 
Paris  in  1473.  These  works  were  also  reprinted  at  Venice,  where  they  were 
eagerly  bought  up.  The  study  of  geography  at  this  period  held  a  large  place 
in  the  S3'stem  of  public  education,  and  what  proves  it  even  more  clearly  than 
contemporary  evidence  is  the  quantity  of  small  editions  of  Pomponius  Mela 
which  were  printed  for  use  in  the  universities  throughout  Eui'ope. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  this  profusion  of  maps  and  books  on  geography 
gave  a  general  impulse  to  sea  voyages  and  expeditions.  The  Portuguese, 
after  spending  a  whole  century  in  their  discovery  of  the  western  coasts  of 
Africa,  prepared  to  push  forward  into  the  Indian  Ocean  by  way  of  the  Cape 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


of  Good  Hope,  so  as  to  extend  their  commercial,  military,  and  naval  power  to 
Asia  as  well  as  to  Africa.  Diego  d'Azambuza  created  in  1481  the  first 
European  establishment  in  Guinea,  which  had  been  explored  twenty  years 
beforehand  by  his  compatriot  Cintra ;  and  Joan  Cano  discovered  Congo 
in  1-484.  But  the  boldest  mariners,  notwithstanding  their  possession  of  the 
compass,  which   had   been    discovered    in    the    twelfth    century,   would   not 


Fig.  205.— Discovery  of  San  Domingo  (InsuU  Hyepana)  by  Chri8toj)her  Columbus.— After  a  Ske'  ch 
which  is  attributed  to  him,  and  in  whieh  he  is  himself  made  to  appear. — Fac-simile  of  a  Wood 

Engraving  of   the  "Epistola  Christofori  Colom,"  undated   Edition  (1492  f),  in  quarto. In 

the  Milan  Library. 


venture  across  the  Atlantic,  which  was  believed  to  be  boundless  and  full  of 
perils.  Tlie  pilots,  however,  discussed  amongst  each  other  whether  or  not  u 
vessel,  by  steering  continually  westward,  would  reach  the  most  easterly 
islands  of  the  Indian  Ocean.      This  was  tlie  idea  formed  by  the  Genoese  pilot, 

1"    V 


2  go  GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


Christopher  Columbus,  born  in  1446,  and  accustomed  to  the  sea  from  his 
childhood.  He  says  in  one  of  his  letters,  "  God  imparted  to  me  great  know- 
ledge of  maritime  matters,  and  some  knowledge  of  the  stars,  of  geometry, 
and  of  arithmetic.  Moreover,  He  granted  me  the  power  to  delineate  globes, 
and  to  indicate  the  proper  position  of  towns,  rivers,  and  mountains."  He 
was,  therefore,  a  geographer,  and  still  more  a  chart-maker. 

A  Florentine  astronomer,  Toscanelli,  showed  him  a  map  upon  which  he 
had  indicated  the  route  to  follow  in  the  Atlantic  in  order  to  reach  the  Indian 
isles,  for  it  was  not  supposed  that  there  was  any  land  between  Europe  and 
Asia.  Columbus,  as  he  himself  states,  only  intended  at  first  to  "  seek  for  the 
East  by  way  of  the  West."  The  advice  of  Toscanelli  induced  him  to  follow 
this  new  route,  but  it  was  in  vain  that  he  applied  to  the  Eepiiblic  of  Genoa 
and  the  King  of  Portugal  for  fimds  to  equip  his  vessels.  After  eight  years 
of  fruitless  efforts  he  obtained  from  Ferdinand,  the  Catholic  King  of  Arragon, 
and  Queen  Isabella  of  Castile,  three  small  vessels,  with  which  he  started  from 
the  port  of  Palos,  in  Andalusia,  on  the  3rd  of  August,  1492.  In  March,  1493, 
he  returned  to  Spain,  after  having  discovered  the  islands  of  San  Salvador, 
Cuba,  and  San  Domingo  (Fig.  205) .  Appointed  Viceroy  of  the  new  lands  which 
he  had  acquired  for  Spain,  he  returned  there  in  the  following  year,  but  it  was 
not  imtil  his  third  voyage  in  1498  that  he  discovered  the  continent  and 
explored  the  coast  of  South  America  (Fig.  206). 

The  discoveries  of  Christopher  Columbus,  whose  name  did  not  apparently 
obtain  the  notoriety  which  it  deserved  in  after  ages,  produced  a  great  effect 
throughout  Europe.  The  first  indications,  vague  and  incomplete  as  they 
were,  were  received  with  enthusiasm,  and  the  detailed  information  by  which 
they  were  followed  left  no  doubt  as  to  the  existence  of  these  vast  unknown 
knds.  They  led  to  the  fitting  out  of  a  great  number  of  maritime  expeditions, 
in  which  science  had  no  part,  and  the  object  of  which  was  to  take  people  to 
what  was  called  the  gold  country.  A  great  impulse,  however,  was  given  to 
geography,  and  throughout  Italy  and  Spain  the  principal  families  devoted 
large  svmis  to  the  formation  in  their  palaces  of  collections  of  books,  maps, 
and  instruments  bearing  upon  nautical  astronomy,  hydrography,  and  aU 
the  branches  of  ancient  and  modern  geography.  These  families,  animated  by 
generous  motives,  spent  vast  sums  in  promoting  voyages  of  exploration  and 
discovery  to  the  new  parts  of  the  world. 

An  adroit  Florentine  adventurer,  named  Amerigo  Vespucci,  was  enabled. 


K 


)LDOUT 


NOT 


GITIZED 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 


291 


by  the  munificence  of  one  of  these  Italian  families,  to  cciiiip  a  small  flotilla, 
and  make  several  voyages  in  the  seas  explored  by  Christopher  Columbus. 
These  voyages  were  probably  undertaken  for  commercial  purposes;  but 
Vespucci  gave  them  the  appearance  of  having  been  made  in  the  cause  of 
geography  by  publishing,  in  the  form  of  a  letter,  the  description  of  new  lands 
which  he  claimed  to  have  discovered  before  Christopher  Colmubus,  to  whom 
he  made  no  allusion.  This  letter,  written  in  Italian  and  of  which  a  great 
many   copies   were   printed,    was   widely    circulated   throughout    Italy,    the 


1  \1    ^^'-^I'lAY  ^'^'^^  '^*'' 


•s-  /  -^. 


\-zf^f// 


::^\oY£TSn^jj 


Fig.  206.—  Signature  at  the  foot  of  an  Autograjih  Li-ttcr  of  Christopher  Columbus,  addressed  from 
Seville  to  the  noble  Lords  of  the  Office  of  St.  George,  and  dated  "  A  dos  dias  de  Abril  l.jli'2." 
— Preserved  in  the  JIunicipal  Archives  at  Genoa. 

inhabitants  of  which  were  much  pleased  at  the  success  of  one  of  their  country- 
men, and  at  once  gave  to  the  Now  World  the  name  of  Aiiirn'ca  in  his  honour. 
The  latter,  after  the  death  of  Cohnnbus  in  l.jOG,  continued  liis  voyages  along 
the  American  coast,  and  stoutly  maintained  (Jiat  if  Columbus  had  diseo-\'ered 
the  islands  of  that  continent,  he  was  the  fiist  to  have  found  the  continent 
itself.  His  statements  were  believed,  and  flie  name  of  America  was  finally 
given  to  a  continent  \\]iifh  lie  liail  iiicnly  e.xjilorcd   in  company   with    several 


292  GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE. 

Spanish,  French,  and  Portuguese  navigators,  svich  as  Hojeda,  Pinzon,  and 
Cabral. 

The  Portuguese  seemed  for  a  time  to  abandon  their  expeditions  to  the 
New  World,  being  so  much  engaged  in  establishing  their  trading  stations 
upon  the  west  coast  as  they  had  already  done  upon  the  east  coast  of  Africa. 
Albuquerque  and  Vasco  de  Gama  had  won  for  them  the  islands  of  Goa  and 
Cejdon,  and  their  possessions  upon  the  Asiatic  shores  increased  rapidly.  But 
their  navigators  could  not  lono-  remain  indifferent  to  the  commercial  current 
which  was  drawing  all  the  navies  of  Europe  into  American  waters,  and  they 
entertained  the  hope  of  discovering  in  the  new  land  a  passage  into  the  Indian 
Ocean  (Fig.  207).  Thus  their  voyages  had  a  certain  scientific  tendency,  and 
were  calculated  to  serve  the  progress  of  geography.  Gaspar  Cortereal  sought 
in  vain  northward  this  passage  communicating  with  Asia.  He  entered  the 
Gulf  of  Labrador,  and  ascended  the  St.  Lawrence  in  1500,  where  he  was 
stopped  by  the  ice.  Three  years  previously  a  Venetian  trader  named 
Cabotto,  settled  at  Bristol,  had  attempted  to  discover  in  this  direction  a 
passage  to  India,  but  the  only  result  of  his  exj)lorations  was  the  discovery  of 
Newfoundland.  The  intrepid  Magellan  was  more  fortunate  in  his  researches 
along:  the  east  coast  of  South  America,  and  he  discovered  in  southern  latitudes 
the  straits  which  still  bear  his  name,  and  which  opened  up  an  entrance  into 
the  South  Sea,  across  which  he  pursued  his  voj^age  to  the  countless  islands  of 
Polynesia  (1521).  Magellan,  though  a  Portuguese,  was  in  the  service  of 
Spain  when  he  undertook  this  long  and  perilous  expedition,  which  had 
such  brilliant  results  for  geographical  science. 

The  object  of  the  expeditions  of  the  Spaniards  into  America,  which 
followed  one  another  in  rapid  succession,  was  to  take  possession  of  the 
country  in  the  name  of  the  King  of  Spain,  and  to  enrich  a  few  adventurers 
of  various  nationalities.  Diaz  de  Solis  and  Pinto  discovered  Yucatan  in  1507, 
having  disembarked  at  Bio  Janeiro ;  Pontius  de  Leon  discovered  Florida  by 
chance  in  1512 ;  Vasco  Nuiies  saw  Peru  in  1513,  and  Pizarro  conquered  it 
in  1526.  These  conqiiests  and  discoveries  were  not  of  any  immediate  service 
to  geographj^  for  the  navigators  thought  less  of  studying  the  country  than  of 
working  the  gold  and  silver  mines ;  but  when  naturalists  and  men  of  letters, 
such  as  Oviedo  y  Valdes,  J.  Varezzani,  Eamnusio,  and  other  savants  went  to 
the  country,  its  geographical  features  became  better  known. 

King   Francis  I.,  who    would   have   liked  France  to  have   had  a  share 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIEXCE. 


293 


in  the  new  continent,  gave  a  very  conspicuous  place  to  geographical  study  in 
the  Royal  College  founded  by  him.  He  encouraged  most  of  the  voyao-es 
undertaken  during  his  reign,  amongst  which  must  be  mentioned  that  of 
Jacques  Cartier,  who  discovered  Canada  in  lo;38.     Other  French  travellers 


Fig.  207. — Galley  of  the  Sixteenth  Century. — After  an  Engraving  by  liaj.hael.— In  the  Collect'on 
of  the  Fine  Arts  Academy,  Venice. 


not  less  devoted  to  the  cause  of  science  explored  both  hemispheres,  and 
collected,  during  their  distant  pilgrimages,  very  useful  information  of  a 
geographical  kind ;   amongst  them  being  Pierre  Gilles,  Andre  Thevet,  and 


294 


GEOGRAPHICAL  SCIENCE. 


Pierre  Belon,  who  publislied  excellent  Cosmographies  on  the  East;  Jean 
Parmentier  and  Francois  Nicolay,  who  visited  the  two  Indies,  and  brought 
back  much  interesting  information.      Amongst   the   most  indefatigable  of 


Fig.  208. — Yow  of  the  first  Companions  of  St.  Ignatius  in  the  Church  of  Monlmartre,  upon  the 
Day  of  the  Assumption  (1534).— Father  Pierre  Lefevre,  the  only  priest  in  the  whole  Company, 
is  saying  Mass.— Picture  of  the  School  of  Simon  Vouet  (Seventeenth  Century),  in  the  School 
of  St.  Genevieve,  Paris. 


travellers  were  the  companions  of  St.  Ignatius  and  of  Francois  Xavier,  who 
commenced  about  this  time  to  write  the  history  of  their  missions  ia  the 


GEOGRAPHICAL   SCIENCE.  295 


liitberto  idolatrous  lands  whither  they  went  to  preach  the  goispel  (Fig.  2(),S). 
Geographical  publications  were  in  such  demand  throughout  France  at  this 
period  that  the  Paris  booksellers  ventured  the  simultaneous  publication, 
during  the  reign  of  Charles  IX.,  of  two  enormous  comjjilations  taken  from 
the  celebrated  "  Geographia  "  of  Sebastian  Munster,  and  bearing  the  title  of 
" Cosmographie  Universelle,"  the  one  by  Francois  de  Belleforcst,  and  the 
other  by  Andre  Thevet,  and  both  illustrated  with  maps  and  engravings. 

The  English  and  the  Dutch  did  not  hold  aloof  from  this  jiassion  for 
discovery  and  exploration  in  Africa  and  America.  The  Dutch  had  also 
sought  in  a  northerly  direction  for  a  direct  route  to  the  Indian  Ocean,  but 
they  were  driven  back  by  the  ice  at  the  Xorth  Pole.  England,  while  at  war 
with  Spain,  sent  two  fleets,  commanded  by  Drake  and  Cavendish,  to  the  coast 
of  North  America  to  destroy  the  Spanish  settlements ;  and  Drake,  after  he 
had  accomplished  this  task,  sailed  to  Cape  Horn,  and  round  it  as  far  as 
Vancouver's  Land,  while  John  Davis  had  been  extending  his  Ajitarctic 
explorations  far  into  the  frozen  waters  of  Greenland. 

The  savants  of  the  Xetherlands  seem  to  have  acquired  the  monopolj'  of 
the  works  illustrating  the  progress  in  geographical  knowledge  effected  by 
such  expeditions.  Abraham  Oertel,  a  Fleming  of  Antwerp,  published  in 
1570  the  first  Atlas  of  modern  gaography,  imder  the  Latin  title  of  "  Theatrum 
Orbis  Terrarum"  (Theatre  of  the  Terrestrial  Globe).  Gerhard  Kaulfnian, 
sumamed  Mercator,  a  native  of  Eupebnonde,  also  published  in  1594  a  large 
Atlas  executed  with  the  utmost  precision  and  elegance,  and  very  remarkable 
from  a  mathematical  j'oint  of  view.  These  two  magnificent  works  soon 
obtained  a  great  reputation,  and  the  learned  Yossius  was  justified  in  his 
declaration  that  "  geography  and  chronology  have  become  the  two  eyes  of 
history." 


HERALDIC    SCIENCE. 


The  fat'ed  Origin  of  Armorial  Bearings. — Heraldic  Science  during  the  Feudal  Period. — The  First 
Armorial  Bearings  in  the  Eleventh  and  Twelfth  Centuries. — The  Meaning  of  the  Colours  and 
Divisions  on  the  Shield. — Kings  of  Arms  and  Heralds. — Heraldic  Figures. — Qu.idrupeds, 
Birds,  Fishes. — Plants,  Flowers,  Fruits. — The  Legend  of  the  Fleur-de-lis. — Emblematic  Arms. 
■ — Prevalence  of  Armoritil  Bearings  in  the  Thirteenth  Century. — Helmets  and  Crests. — 
Mottoes  and  Emblems. — Traders'  Sign-boards. — Usurpeis  of  Armorial  Bearings. — Decadence 
of  the  Science  of  Heraldry. 


O^ME  liave  endeavoured  to  trace  back  tlie 
use  of  armorial  bearings  to  almost  the 
very  coinmeiicem.ent  of  human  society. 
A  writer  on  heraldry  has  not  scrupled  to 
affirm  that  the  posterity  of  Seth  borrowed 
their  armorial  bearings  from  the  animal 
and  vegetable  kingdoms,  and  that  the 
children  of  Cain  painted  upon  their 
bucklers  implements  of  husbandrj'.  An- 
other person  attributes  their  invention  to 
Noah  when  he  came  out  of  the  ark,  and 
in  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries  it  was  constantly  being  asserted  that 
ancient  docmnents  had  disclosed  the  arms  of  Adam,  of  the  first  patriarchs,  of 
the  prophets,  of  the  Kings  of  Jerusalem,  of  the  Virgin  Mary,  and  of  Christ 
himself. 

.  As  M.  E.  de  la  Bedolliere,  in  a  very  luminous  treatise  upon  the  origin  of 
heraldry,  remarks,  such  blunders  are  not  worth  refuting.  So  far  from  being 
contemporaneous  with  the  earliest  ages,  armorial  bearings  were  not  even 
known  to  the  ancients.  They  had  their  national  and  hereditary  sjonbols, 
such  as  the  Lion  of  Judah,  the  Golden  Eagle  of  the  Medes,  the  Owl  of 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


297 


Fig.  209.— Or. 


Fig.  212.— Azure. 


Fig.  215.— Purpure. 


Fig.  210.— Argeut. 


■^ 


Fig.  213. — Sinople,  or  Vert. 


Fig.  216. — Teane  range. 


ixin 


Fig.  211.— Gules. 


Fig.  214.— Sable. 


Fig.  217. — Ermine. 


Fig.  218.— Ermines. 


Fig.  220. — Counter-vair. 


Fig.  219.— Vair. 

Metals,  Colours,  and  Furs  interpreted  by  the  Engravers  of  the  Middle  Ages  by  means  of  Marks 
and  Conventional  Signs. 


U   U 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


Athens,  the  Crocodile  of  Egypt,  and  the  Dove  of  Assyria,  but  the  devices 
with  which  their  bucklers  were  covered  were  not  transmissible  from  father 
to  son.  These  figures,  which  the  celebrated  warriors  of  Rome  represented 
upon  their  arms  as  the  insignia  of  their  warlike  achievements,  were  selected 
at  the  bidding  of  fancy.  We  may,  however,  cite,  as  a  imique  instance  of 
a  patrimonial  emblem,  the  crow  which  was  worn  on  the  crests  of  their  helmets 
by  the  descendants  of  Yalerius  Corvinus,  to  whom  tradition  attributed  a 
singular  victory  achieved  by  the  intervention  of  one  of  these  birds  of  evil 
omen. 

.  When  the  age  of  feudalism  set  in,  it  became  the  custom  to  distinguish 
by  means  of  various  signs,  bright  colours  being  as  a  rule  used,  the  military 
shields  and  insignia,  so  as  to  provide  rallying-points  for  the  troops  during  the 
thick  of  the  fight.  These  decorative  paintings,  in  which  may  be  discerned 
the  germ  of  annorial  bearings,  were  at  first  styled  cognisances,  or  entre-sains, 
and  they  were  all  the  more  necessary  as  the  vantailles,  or  eyelets,  of  the  armet 
(closed  helmet)  quite  hid  the  face  of  the  wearer. 

Here  and  there,  in  the  chronicles  of  the  Middle  Ages,  are  to  be  found 
traces  of  the  cognisances,  but  at  the  epoch  when  they  first  appear  in  history 
these  different  signs,  all  of  a  very  simple  kind,  were  not  used  to  foiin  the 
special  combinations  which  afterwards  became  the  exclusive  appanage  of  such 
and  such  a  family,  and  which  fixed  the  principles  of  heraldic  science.  They 
were,  so  to  speak,  public  property,  and  any  one  who  chose  could  appropriate 
them.  Master  Jean  de  Garlande,  who  wrote  in  1080  a  very  curious  descrip- 
tion of  Paris,  relates  that  the  "  dealers  in  bucklers,  who  supplied  their  goods 
to  all  the  towns  of  France,  sold  to  the  chevaliers  shields  covered  with  cloth, 
leather,  and  pinchbeck,  upon  which  were  painted  lions  and  fleurs-de-Hs." 
Thus,  as  late  as  the  close  of  the  eleventh  century,  the  Kings  of  France  had 
no  regular  coat-of-arms,  and  the  shields,  embellished  with  lions  and  the  fleur- 
de-lis,  belonged  by  right  of  purchase  to  any  one  who  chose  to  buy  them,  upon 
his  showing  that  as  a  chevalier  he  had  the  right  to  use  them. 

If  the  coat-of-arms  existed  as  one  of  the  attributes  of  nobility,  it  may  be 
affirmed  that  the  practice  had  not  any  fixed  and  general  basis.  Heraldic 
science  was  in  its  infancy,  and  had  not  even  settled  the  way  in  which 
armorial  bearings  were  to  be  composed,  by  the  use  of  enamels — that  is  to  say, 
the  metals  and  the  colours — and  of  the  pkish,  or  fur,  to  form  the  ground  of 
the  shield,  in  such  a  way  as  not  to  confound  them,  or  place  one  upon  the 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE.  ^^^ 


other.  The  metals,  the  or  and  the  argent,  wore  proLaLly  no  more  than  coIoui'm 
of  yellow  and  white.  The  colours  properly  so  called — blue,  red,  green,  black, 
and  violet — had  not  received  the  names  of  azure,  (jnles,  suwple,  sah/e  and 
jnirpure,  which  were  assigned  them  when  emblazonry  became  an  art  or  a 
science  (Figs.  209  to  220).  The  images  or  enigmatic  figures  which  were 
placed  on  the  coloured  or  metallic  ground  of  the  escutcheon  presented  little 
variety,  and  every  one  considered  himself  free  to  alter  their  colour  and  shape 
as  suited  his  fancy.  In  any  event,  the  unvarying  principle  which  consists 
in  never  placing  colour  upon  colour,  or  metal  upon  metal,  in  a  coat-of-arms, 
was  not  established  during  the  feudal  period.  At  about  this  epoch,  however, 
a  few  coats-of-arms,  which  at  first  were  mere  cognisances,  began  to  become 
hereditary,  amongst  them  being  the  cross  voided,  eJteque,  and  paiinetee, 
which  RajTnond  de  St.  GiUes  affixed,  together  with  his  seal,  to  a  deed  dated 
1088,  and  which  remained  part  of  the  armorial  bearings  of  the  Counts  of 
Toulouse  ;  the  two  hars  placed  back  to  back  which  appear  in  the  seal  of 
Thierry  II.,  Count  of  Montbeliard  and  of  Bar-le-Duc,  and  which  were  handed 
down  to  his  successors ;  and  the  ijoung  lions  which  the  Plautagenets  had  upon 
their  coat-of-arms  in  1127,  and  which,  under  the  name  of  leopards,  are  still 
preserved  in  the  royal  arms  of  Great  Britain. 

It  was  in  the  course  of  the  twelfth  century  that  the  annorial  bearings 
increased  in  number,  and  this  was  no  doubt  attributable  to  the  first  Crusade,  as 
may  be  inferred  fi'om  the  choice  of  enamels  iised  in  them.  The  azure  blue,  or 
lapis-lazuli,  had  just  been  imported  from  the  East,  and  its  name  of  uJiramarine 
is  a  reminiscence  of  the  voyage  to  Palestine.  Red  got  its  name  of  fjules 
from  the  fur  trimmings  which  the  crusaders  wore  romid  the  neck  and  the 
wrists,  and  which  were  dyed  red  and  purple  ("  murium  rubrioatas  peUiculas  quas 
(julas  vocant,"  says  St.  Bernard,  the  apostle  of  the  second  Crusade).  The 
enamel  sinople  also  received  its  name  from  the  dye  which  the  crusaders 
brought  from  Sinople,  a  town  in  Asia  Minor. 

Several  divisions  in  the  shield  also  recall  the  tune  when  the  chevahers 
were  fighting  "in  the  miscreant  lands:"  the  martlet,  a  species  of  bird  which 
emigrates  every  autumn  to  wai-m  climates,  naturally  recalled  Jerusalem  ;  the 
shell  (coquillc)  appertains  specially  to  the  pilgrims  ;  the  l>ezant  d'or  (a  Saracenic 
or  Arab  coin)  was  the  ransom  paid  to  the  Infidels ;  while  the  cross,  which  m 
every  conceivable  diversity  of  shape  appears  in  all  the  oldest  coats-of-arms, 
announced  a  participation  in  the  Iloly  War. 


300  HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 

In  the  thirteenth  century  the  cognisances  became  in  universal  use,  and 
henceforward  not  only  the  nobles,  but  to\ms,  villages,  and  abbeys  also, 
assumed  armorial  bearings.  The  cognisances  then  received  the  name  of 
blazon,  the  etjnnologj^  of  which  gave  rise  to  much  debate  among  the  learned, 
though  this  debate  might  have  been  spared  had  they  noticed  that  in  early 
French  the  vrord  blazer  (to  shine,  to  blaze),  of  Celtic  origin,  is  often  used 
instead  of  shield  or  buckler.  Thus  the  author  of  the  romance  "  William-the- 
Short-Nosed,"  describing  a  battle  in  the  twelfth  century,  writes  that  the 
assailants  crushed  the  helmets  and  broke  the  blasons  in  pieces  ;  and  in  the  not 
less  ancient  romance  of  "  Garin  le  Loherain,"  which  is  referred  to  in  another 
part  of  this  volume,  the  hero  is  overthrown  by  a  terrible  blow  dealt  at  his 
Mason  by  Chevalier  Ivait :  in  another  place.  King  Amadus,  attacking  a 
Gascon,  strikes  the  buckle,  or  central  part,  of  his  adversary's  blason.  Blason, 
then,  simply  means  the  buckler,  the  shield,  upon  which  the  coat-of-arms  was 
at  first  displayed.  The  science  of  blazonry,  begotten  of  the  necessity  for  having 
some  means  of  distinguishing  between  so  many  different  signs  and  emblems, 
was  but  the  result  of  studying  the  various  manners  in  which  were  arranged 
the  enamels  and  divisions  which  appeared  in  the  coats-of-arms.  It  was  also 
caUed  heraldic  science,  because  it  was  the  special  study  of  the  heralds,  whose 
functions  became  of  considerable  importance  in  the  feudal  organization  of  the 
Middle  Ages.  The  duties  of  the  heralds  are  alluded  to  in  the  volum^e  on 
"Manners  and  Customs"  (chapter  on  Chivalry),  but  it  may  be  added  here 
that  these  officers  of  the  household,  who  only  obtained  their  diploma,  or  com- 
mission, after  an  apprenticeship  of  seven  or  eight  years  in  the  service  of  their 
feudal  lord,  had  over  them  the  kings  of  anns  (Fig.  221),  appointed  by  the 
sovereign  to  draw  up  a  list  of  the  nobles  and  gentry  of  each  province,  with 
their  different  armorial  bearings,  for  the  compilation  of  a  general  peerage, 
which  was  placed  in  the  custody  of  the  premier  King  of  Arms  of  France. 

Figuring  in  their  capacity  of  public  officials  at  certain  ceremonies,  where 
they  received,  in  accordance  with  the  established  custom,  many  valuable 
presents,  the  heralds  of  arms  were,  as  a  rule,  men  of  considerable  erudition, 
incessantly  engaged  in  verifying  the  titles  of  nobility  and  the  genealogies,  in 
deciphering  the  blazons,  and  in  establishing  generally  the  true  principles  of 
heraldic  science.  It  was  they  who  laid  down  the  laws  with  regard  to  the 
jnass  of  distinctive  decorations,  the  original  selection  of  which  had  often  been 
guided  by  ignorance  or  capriciousness. 


THE  KING  AT  ARMS  SHOWS  THE  DUG  DE  BOURBON  THE  ARMORIAL  BEARINGS 
OF  THE  GHEVALIERS  WHO  ARE  TO  TAKE  PART  IN  THE  TOURNAMENT. 

Minuaure  Irom  the  Towwjis  du  ray  Rend.  M.  S.  of  the  xv"'  century,  executed  after  King  Rene's  designs. 

Arsennl  Library,  Paris. 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


301 


They,  in  the  first  place,  settled  the  shape  of  the  shiehl.  That  of  the  French 
barons,  which  was  first  of  all  triangular  and  somewhat  slanting,  was  replaced 
by  a  quadrilateral  shield,  rounded  at  the  two  lower  corners,  and  terminating 
in  a  point  at  the  centre  of  its  base.  The  Germanic  shield  was  remarkable  for 
its  rounded  basis,  and  for  a  lateral  indentation,  which  was  used  for  supporting 


Fig,  221. — "Fashion  and  Manner  in  which  the  King  of  Arms  displays  to  the  Four  Judges  the 
Plaintiff  and  Defendant,  and  presents  to  them  the  Letters  of  the  said  Plaintiff  and  Defendant, 
■wearing  upon  his  shoulder  the  Cloth  of  Gold  and  the  Painted  Parchment  of  the  same." — 
Miniature  from  the  "  Toumois  du  roy  Rene." — Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — In  the 
National  Library,  Paris. 


the  lance  when  the  man-at-arms,  mounted  upon  his  charger,  held  this  lance 
at  rest,  covering  his  breast  with  his  buckler. 

Leaving  to  special  heraldic  treatises  the  theoretic  description  of  the 
different  partitions  of  the  shield — that  is  to  say,  the  lines  which  divide  it  into 
horizontal,  diagonal,  and  perpendicular  sections  or  parts — we  proceed  to  give 


302 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


a  siumnary  explanation  of  the  figures  wliicli,  once  so  familiar,  have  become 
very  enigmas  to  m.ost  persons  in  the  present  day,  vrhich  constitute  the  blazon 
(Figs.  222  to  239). 


Fig.  222.— Party  per  Pale.  Fig-  223.— Party  per  Fess.  Fig.  224.— Party  per  Bend. 


Fig.  225.— Party  per  Bend 
Sinister. 


Fig.  226.— Tierce  per  Pale.  Fig.  227.— Tierce  per  Fess. 


Fig.  228.— Quarterly.  Fig.  229.— Quarterly  per  Saltier.     Fig.  230.— Gyrony  of  Eight. 

Terms  of  Heraldry.     Partitions  of  the  Shield. 

To  the  colours  and  metals  already  mentioned,  and  which  seem  to  have  been 
selected  solely  in  order  that  they  might  harmonize  with  the  variegated  costume 
of  the  chivalry  of  the  Middle  Ages,  must  be  added  i\i.e  plush,  ovfur — that  is  to 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


303 


say  tlie  ermine  and  tlie  vair — the  valuable  furs  used  in  France  by  the  nobles  of 
the  ninth  ccnturv;  for  we  read  in  the  "  Life  of  St.  Geraud,"  written  at  this 
period,  that  the  grandees  of  the  Carlovingian  court  trinuued  their  fur  mantles 


Fig.  231.— Ecartele  contre-  Fig.  232.— Parti  d'un  trait  et         Fig.  233.— Parti  de  3  traits 

cartele.  coupe  de  2  (6quartiers).  et  coupe  d'un  (8  quartiers). 


v«« 

*^^ 

Fig.  234.— Parti  de  4  traits  et         Fig.  23.5.— Parti  de  3  traits.  Fig.  236.— Parti  de  3  traits, 

coupe  d'un  (10  quartiers).  coupe  de  2  (12  quartiers).  coupe  de  3  (16  quartiers). 


^ 


V 

•n 

^ 

_ 

^ 

Fig.  237.— Parti  de  4  traits,       Fig.   238.— Parti  de   7  traits,  Fig.  239.— ficartele,  avec  un 

coup(?  de  3  (20  quartiers).  coupe  de  3  (32  quartiers).  ecu  sur  le  tout  et  sur  le 

tout  du  tout. 

Terms  of  Ileraldrj'.     Partitions  of  the  Shield. 
With  the  fur  of  flie  cniiiiK-,  or  Anncniiin   rut,  inid  that  they  used  lozenge- 


30+  HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 

shaped  strips  of  ermine  or  foiunart  to  form  tlie  vair  (yariegated  fur).  The 
enam.el,  or  sable,  which  re23resents  black  in  the  language  of  heraldry,  was 
the  fur  of  the  sable,  or  fisher-weasel,  as  it  is  called  by  several  poets  of  the 
twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries. 

Amongst  the  panels  in  the  coats-of-arms  are  to  be  found  several  other 
de'\'ices  borrowed  from  the  dress  of  the  nobility  of  that  period,  such  as  the 
labels,  or  gold  fringe  of  sashes ;  the  orles,  or  trimmings  of  timics ;  the  bands, 
or  bars,  which  represented  scarfs ;  the  lambrequins  (mantles),  or  plumes  made 
of  silk  or  velvet,  which  were  affixed  to  the  extremity  of  the  helmet ;  the 
housseaiix,  or  top-boots  with  thick  soles,  which  were  only  worn  by  men  when 
they  went  out  on  foot  in  wet  weather ;  the  pairle,  which,  having  the  shape  of 
the  letter  Y,  resembled  the  bishop's  pallium,  and  constituted,  according  to  the 
heralds  of  the  sixteenth  century,  the  emblem  of  the  great  devotions  of  the 
chevalier :   "  His  God,  his  Lady,  and  his  King." 

In  addition  to  the  hieroglyphics  derived  from  the  dress  of  the  nobility, 
there  were  other  heroic  symbols:  the  vals,  or  marks  of  jurisdiction;  the 
frettiaux,  or  frettes,  the  barriers  which  fenced  in  the  lists ;  the  portcullis,  the 
towers,  the  chains,  the  arrows,  and  the  battering-rams,  emblems  which  carry 
their  own  explanation  with  them  ;  and  also  the  keys,  which  were  a  souvenir  of 
the  capitidation  of  a  castle  or  of  a  city. 

Fire,  water,  clouds,  and  even  the  stars  (Figs.  240  to  244)  also  entered  into 
the  composition  of  the  shield.  The  Chains  family  has  azure  with  three 
crescents  argent,  and  that  of  Cernon  azure,  with  six  comets  or,  three  in  chief, 
and  three  in  point,  with  the  crescent  en  ahisme  (in  the  centre  of  the  shield). 

The  whole  of  the  human  body  is  not  so  often  used  in  the  blazon  as  the 
separate  parts  of  the  body — head,  hands,  eyes,  legs,  &c. — which  are  sometimes 
represented,  as  also  are  animals,  plants,  and  various  objects,  with  their 
natural  colour,  called  in  heraldry  carnation. 

The  animals,  quadrupeds  especially,  which,  as  a  general  rule,  imply  alle- 
gorical ideas,  are  very  common  in  the  blazon,  though  they  are  always  repre- 
sented after  a  tj^pe  more  or  less  untrue  to  nature :  the  lion  (generosity),  the 
elephant  (courtesy),  the  squirrel  (foresight,  because  that  animal  is  careful  to 
close  the  apertures  of  his  nest),  and  the  lamb  (gentleness).  For  instance,  the 
Montalembert  arms  are  or,  with  three  icolves'  heads,  sable ;  the  Portal  arms, 
azure,  with  ox  or,  accompanied  in  chief  by  six  fleurs-de-lis,  the  same ;  the 
Coignieux  arms,  azure,  porcupine  passant  sable. 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


305 


Asa  general  rule,  birds  express  change  of  residence,  of  nationality,  and  of 


B'ig.  240.— The  Piccolominis,  a 
Family  belonging  to  Rome, 
and  established  at  Sienna 
ahout  the  Eighth  Century. 
— A  Crescent,  with  the 
Motto,  "Sine  macula." 


241.  — John   II.,    King    of    Fig.  242.— Richard  Cceur- 


France  (13.50— 1364).— A  ra- 
diating Star,  with  the  Motto, 
"  Monalrant  regibus  astra 
viam,"  in  allusion  to  the  star 
which  guided  the  Magi  to 
Bethlehem. 


de-Lion,  King  of  Eng- 
land (1189—1199).— 
A  Star,  probably  that 
of  Bethlehem,  issuing 
from  out  of  the  Horns 
of  the  Crescent. 


condition,  irrespectively  of  the  i^articular  meaning  applicable  to  each  (Figs.  24G 


Fig.  243.— Martin,  I.,  King  of  Arragon  (139.5— 
1410). — Faith  triumphant,  erect  upon  the 
Terrestrial  Globe,  with  the  Motio,  "  Non 
in  teuebris." 


Fig.  244.— Emanuel,  King  of  Portugal  (149.5— 
1.521). — The  Terrestrial  Globe,  surrounded 
by  the  Ocean,  acrosa  which  are  sailing 
several  Portuguese  Vessels.  Motto, 
"  Primus  circumdedisli  me." 


and  247).     Thus  dominion  is  represented  by  tlip  eaglo  ;  vigilance  by  Ihe  cock, 

7!     K 


3o6 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


tlie  lieron,  or  the  stork ;  conjugal  affection  by  tlie  dove ;  eloquence  by  the 
parrot ;  long  and  laborious  old  age  by  the  swan ;  and  self-devotion  by  the    I 
pelican,  wbicb  was  believed  by  the  ancients  to  nourish  its  j^oung  with  the 


Fig.  245. — Alfonso  X.,  King  of  Custile  (1252 — 1284). — A  Pelican  opening  its  side  to  nourish  the 
Young.     Motto,  "  Pro  lege  et  grege." 

flesh  of  its  own  breast,  and  which  is  represented  (see  Fig.  245)  upon  its  nest 
with  extended  wings,  tearing  its  breast  and  brooding  over  its  young.  In  the 
language  of  heraldry  the  drops  of  blood  which  the  pelican  draws  from  its 


Fig.  246.— Robert  of  Anjou,  King  of  Naples 
(1309— 1343).— A  Swallow  bringing  Food 
to  its  Young.     Motto,  "  Concordia  reani." 


Fig.  247.— "William,  Prince  of  Orange  (1572— 
1584). — A  Halcyon  placing  its  Nest  in  the 
Sea,  and  above  it  the  Monogram  of  Christ. 
Motto,  "  Sa3vis  tranquillus  in  undis." 


breast  are  called  piety,  when  they  are  of  a  different  enamel  from  the  bird. 
Thus  the  house  of  Lecamus  has  gules  (shield  on  a  red  ground),  with  peHcan 
argcni,  vuLning  itself  gules,  in  its  eyrie ;  the  chief  seamed  azure,  charged  with  a 


HERALDIC  SCIEXCE. 


307 


fleur-de-lis  or.  The  ancient  family  of  A'iemio,  ^\  hicli  bad  given  two  admirals 
and  a  marshal  to  France,  has  (julca,  with  eagle  or.  The  house  of  Savoy,  in 
Dauphinj%  has  azure,  with  three  doves  or ;  ilontmorency,  or,  cross  gidcs, 
cantoned  by  sixteen  spread-eagles,  azure.  These  spread-eagles,  which,  as  a 
rule,  represent  eagles  without  beak  or  claws,  and  which  indicate  a  victory 
over  some  foreign  foe  (Fig.  248),  have  a  spiecial  meaning  in  the  aims  of  the 
house  of  Lorraine.  It  is  said  that  during  a  festival  given  in  honour  of  King 
Pepin,  a  quarrel  having  arisen  between  the  Franks  and  the  Lorraincrs,  the 
Duke  Begon,  who  held  the  jiost  of  seneschal,  placed  himself  at  the  head  of 


Fig.  248.— Godfrey  de  Bouillon,  Duke  of  Lorraine,  King  of  Jerusalum  (1099).— An  Arrow  trans- 
fixing three  Spread-Eagles.  The  Motto,  taken  from  Virgil,  is,  "  Dedeliitne  viam  casusve 
deusvef  "    The  Spread  Eagle  stUl  lorms  part  of  the  Arms  of  the  House  of  Hapsburg-Lorraine. 


the  kitchen  servants,  armed  them  with  spoons,  pokers,  and  fire-dogs,  and, 
seizing  for  himself  a  spit  upon  which  several  plovers  were  being  roasted, 
committed  a  frightful  carnage  amongst  the  Franks.  It  was  in  memory  of 
this  exploit  that  the  plovers,  converted  into  ftprcad-eayles  to  make  it  clear 
that  they  were  upon  the  .spit,  took  their-  place  in  the  anns  of  Lorraine,  which 
looked  back  with  pride  ujion  the  fact  of  the  Duke  Bcgon  having  been  one  of 
its  early  rulers. 

Fish  generally  represent  .sea  voyages  and  naval  victories.     One  of  the  fish 
oftenest  used  in  the  shield  is  the  doljjhin  (Fig.  '2-49),  which  even,  by  means 


3o8  HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 

of  heraldry,  gave  its  name  to  Daiiphmy,  one  of  tiie  greatest  fiefs  of  the 
French  croTvn. 

Shell-fish,  sei-pents,  and  insects  also  form  part  of  the  figures  used  in 
heraldry,  but  it  is  difiicult  to  say  what  was  the  special  signification  attached 
to  them.  Lowan  Geliot,  however,  in  his  "Armorial  Index,"  published  ia 
1650,  states  that  the  cricket  represents  all  the  domestic  virtues,  because  this 
insect  "  only  frequents  the  hearth  of  honest  people." 

According  to  the  same  author,  whose  imagiaation  gets  the  better  of  him, 
as  is  the  case  with  all  the  old  heralds  of  arms,  plants,  flawers,  and  fruits  had 
all  a  fixed  symboKsm:  the  oak,  for  instance,  meant  power;  the  olive-tree, 
peace;    the  vine,  gladness;   the  apple-tree,  love;    the  cypress,  sadness;   the 


Fig.  249.— Pope  Paul  III.  (1534— 1549).— A  Chameleon  carrying  a  Dolphin. 
Motto,  "Mature." 


pomegranate  (Fig.  250),  by  an  ingenious  idea,  was  held  to  represent  "  the 
alliance  of  nations  and  men  united  under  one  religion."  TrifoUum,  columbine, 
tierce-feiiilles,  quatre-feuilles,  and  quinte-feuilles  represented  hope,  because  their 
appearance  in  the  spring  presaged  the  summer  and  autumn  crops ;  the  rose 
naturally  typified  grace  and  beauty.  The  fleur-de-lis  (which  iu  France,  at  all 
events,  may  be  called  the  queen  of  heraldic  flowers)  has  a  complex  meaning, 
which  "justifies  its  selection  bv  French  kino;s  to  variegate  the  azure  field  of 
their  banner  bespangled  with  innumerable  fleurs-de-lis  or,  before  the  heralds 
reduced  the  niunber  of  flowers  to  three  (Fig.  276). 

Tarious  experts  have  argued  that  this  so-called  fleur-de-lis  did  not  in 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE.  309 

reality  belong  to  the  vegetable  kingdom.  According  to  them  the  flower- 
sbaped  charges  which  Louis  VI.  first  placed  upon  his  seal,  and  which 
Philii^  of  Valois,  in  the  fourteenth  century,  reduced  to  three,  were  the  iron 
tips  of  the  three-headed  javelins  in  use  amongst  the  Jlerovingian  Franks. 
Other  dabblers  in'  heraldry  have  described  the  shield  of  the  earlj^  Kings  of 
France  as  "  sahlc,  three  toads  or."  The  best  contradiction  to  these  ridiculous 
statements  is  to  be  found  in  the  "Annals  "  of  William  of  Nangis,  and  that 
ancient  chronicler  says,  "  The  Kings  of  France  had  in  their  arms  the  fleur- 
de-lis  painted  in  three  leaves,  as  much  as  to  say,  '  Faith,  wisdom,  and  chivalry 
are,  by  the  grace  of  God,  more  abundant  in  our  kingdom  than  anyw'here  else.' 
The  two  leaves  of  the  fleur-de-lis  which  are  bent  signify  wisdom  and  chivahy, 
which   guard   and   protect    the    third   leaf   placed   between    them,   and    the 


Fig.  250.— Catherine  of  Arragon,  first  Wife  of  Henrj'  VIII.  (1501). — A  Pomegranate  bearing  a 
Red  Rose  and  a  "White,  in  allusion  to  the  White  Rose  of  York  and  the  Red  Rose  of  Lancaster  , 
uniting  the  Rights  of  the  two  Families  to  the  English  Crown. 


greater  length  of  which  signifies  faith,  which  must  be  governed  by  wisdom 
and  protected  by  chivalry." 

It  is,  therefore,  beyond  doubt,  according  to  the  evidence  of  this  historian 
of  the  thirteenth  century,  that  in  the  ai-ms  of  the  King  of  France  the  central 
petal  of  the  fleur-de-lis  represented  religion,  and  that  the  wings  or  side-leaves 
represented  the  moral  and  material  force  which  was  intended  to  support  it. 
Moreover,  the  fleur-de-lis  was  used  in  the  arms  of  many  noble  families,  both 
French  and  foreign,  which  were  in  no  way  connected  with  the  kings  of  the 
third  French  race.  It  was  only  some  of  these  families  which  had  obtained 
the  privilege  of  placing  the  fleur-de-lis  upon  their  escutcheon,  as  a  recompense 
for  services  rendered  to  the  Crown.     Thus  Charles  VII.,  when  he  ennobled 


HERALDIC  SCIEXCE. 


the  brothers  of  Joan  of  Arc,  gave  them  not  only  the  new  name  of  Du  Lvs, 
■\vhich  they  assumed  after  their  sister,  but  also  an  azure  escutcheon,  charged 
with  a  pointed  sword,  with  two  fleiu's-de-lis  or,  dexter  and  sinister  (Fig.  251). 
After  having  made  use  of  the  principal  emblems  furnished  by  nature  iu 
the  composition  of  aimorial  bearings,  heraldic  science  borrowed  from  the 
work  of  human  hands,  or  from  the  fanciful  conceptions  of  the  human  mind. 
Thus  certain  families  took  for  theii'  escutcheon  instrimients  of  music,  such  as 
hai-ps,  guitars,  or  huntiag-homs,  and  the  ordinary  utensils  of  domestic  hfe, 
such  as  pots,  di-inking-glasses,  knives,  miU-stones,  candlesticks,  &c.     Other 


Fig.  251.- — Family  of  Joan  of  Arc,  alias  Du  Lvs. — A  Sword  argent  in  pale,  tlie  point  supporting  a 
Crown  or,  and  teing  flanked  with  two  Fleurs-de-lis,  with  the  Motto,  "Consilio  tirmatei  Dei." 
This  Coat-of-arms  was  composed  by  Charles  XW.  himself,  in  1429. 


families,    having   more    ambitious    ideas,    placed   in    their    aims    imagiaary 
animals,  snch  as  the  phcenis,  the  unicorn,  harpies,  and  so  forth. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark  that  many  aims  were  emblematic  ;  that  is  to  say, 
people  charged  them  with  certaia  common  objects  which  happened  to  present 
an  analogy  with  their  family  name  (Fig.  252).  For  instance,  the  Bouesseaux 
had  three  hitsheh  (boisseaus)  azure;  the  Chabots,  three  chahots  (a  river- 
fish)  ;  the  Maillys,  three  maillets  (malets)  sinople ;  the  Du  Palmiers,  three 
jxdins  or;  the  Rethels,  three  raieaux  (ratres)  or;  the  Crequys,  a  crequier 
(cherry-tree)  gules;  the  Begassoux,  three  heads  of  the  6e'ra*S(?  (woodcock)  or; 
the  Auchats,  a  chat  (cat)  startled,  argent ;  the  Herices,  thi-ee  herissons  (hedge- 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE.  311 

hogs)  mhlc ;  the  Gourdins,  three  goiinix,  or  eiifaha-s/ip-i,  or ;  the  Guitons,  a 
o-uitar  or.  Upon  the  same  principle,  the  city  of  Rheims,  then  written 
Mains,  took  in  its  arms  two  rainscau.r,  or  rains,  intertwined  branches,  &c. 

The  close  of  the  thirteenth  and  the  whole  of  the  fourteenth  century  were 
the  most  brilliant  in  the  history  of  heraldry.  It  was  a  mctai^horical  language 
which  at  that  time  every  one  spoke  and  understood,  from  the  highest  to  the 
lowest.  Armorial  bearings  wore  placed  everywhere,  with  the  dead  as  with 
the  living,  for  they  were  used  to  decorate  tombs  and  epltai^hs.  They  were  to 
be  seen  sculptured,  engraved,  or  in  relief,  designed  or  painted,  in  the  great 
castles  and  in  the  modest  manors,  upon  the  lintels  of  doors,  upon  the  locks, 
upon  the  weather-cocks,  upon  the  brick  pavements,  upon  the  window-glass. 


Fig.  252. — The  Orsiai  (Roman)  Family  (Fourteenth  Century). — A  Bear  crouched  (the  meaning  of 
the  name),  holding  a  Sand-glass.     Motto,  "  Tempus  et  hora." 


upon  the  chimneys,  upon  the  tapestry,  and  upon  all  the  pieces  of  furniture 
(Fig.  253).  They  were  even  reproduced,  in  many  different  ways,  upon  the 
dress  of  the  nobles  and  of  their  wives  and  families,  as  well  as  upon  their 
servants'  liveries,  upon  the  trappings  of  their  horses  (Fig.  204),  upon  their 
dog-collars,  and  ujxjn  the  hoods  of  their  falcons  and  hawks. 

Towards  the  fifteenth  century  the  blazons  were  made  more  conii)lex  by 
the  addition  of  the  helmet  or  distinctive  sign  ;  that  is  to  say,  above  the  shield 
there  was  placed  the  heaiime  (chevalier's  helmet),  cither  full-face,  three- 
parts  face,  or  in  profile ;  and  according  to  its  shape  and  the  way  in  which  it 
was  made,  it  indicated  exactly,  and  at  a  single  glance,  the  condition  and  title 


3'2 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


of  tlie  person.      Thus  tlie  kings  had.  the  helmet  or,  full-face,  the  visor  com- 
pletslj^  open  and  without  bars,  to  signify  that  a  sovereign  ought  to  know  and 


-Fig.  253.— The  Lords  and  Barons  "make  windows  of  their  blazons;"  that  is  to  say,  exhibit  their 
nobility  by  displaying  their  Banners  and  Coats-of-arms  fiom  the -windows  of  the  Heralds 
Lodge.— After  a  Miniature  in  the  "Tournois  du  Roy  Bene."— Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth 
Century.— In  the  National  Library,  Piiris. 


to  see  everything.      The  helmet  of  counts  and  viscounts  was  argent  three-parts 


HERALDIC   SCIENCE. 


313 


profile,  the  visor  drawn  do-mi,  and  having  nine  bars  or.  That  of  a  baron  had 
only  seven  bars  to  the  visor.  That  of  the  gentry  untitled  was  of  polished 
steel,  placed  in  profile,  with  five  bars  argent.  When  the  King  conferred  or 
sold  a  title,  he  invented  as  the  crest  of  the  blazon,  for  the  person  ennobled. 


Fig.  254. — The  Due  de  Bo'iibon,  .irined  cap-a-fiie  for  the  Tournament. — After  a  Jliniaturc  in  the 
"Tournois  du  Roy  Rene." — Jlamiscript  of  the  Fifteenth  C'entiiry. — In  the  National  Library, 
Paris. 


an  iron  helmet  in  profile,  with  the  rautidUc  and  nose  piece  half  open.  The 
helmets  further  had  pieces  of  cloth  called  lamhrcquins,  which  tlio  wc-arers 
attached  to  the  crests  of  theii-  liclmets,  the  size  of  which  gradually  atlaiiicd 
enormous  proportions.      Tlicso  crests  themselves  became  an  essential  uriiamcnt, 

s  s 


3'+  HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


and  represented  lions,  horns,  cliimaDras,  and  human  arms  bearing  some 
weapon.  Gradiiallj^,  however,  it  became  the  custom  to  replace  these  acces- 
sories by  plain  coronets  enriched  with  gems  and  pearls,  the  shape  and  number 
of  which  varied  according  to  the  rank  of  the  wearer. 

About  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  centurj^  it  became  customary  for  families 
which  had  enrolled  troops,  and  led  them  to  join  the  ost  (army)  of  the  sove- 
reign under  their  own  banners,  to  place  above  the  crests  a  lidel,  or  scroll, 
bearing  upon  it  their  baftle-cnj.  Gradually  this  right  was  claimed  by  every 
chevalier  banneret  who  had  the  means  of  assembling  under  his  pennon,  or 
gonfalon  (a  standard  with  the  arms  or  colours  of  a  noble),  four  or  five  gentlemen 
and  twelve  or  fifteen  men-at-arms  equifiped  at  his  expense. 

Moreover,  the  battle-cry  is  of  very  much  earlier  date  than  the  fifteenth 
century,  for  even  the  Barbarians  were  accustomed  to  nerve  themselves  for 
the  fight  by  cries  which  were  also  used  as  signals.  The  usage  of  rallying 
the  soldiers  upon  a  field  of  battle  by  means  of  some  shout  uttered  by  the 
whole  army  in  chorus  is  to  be  discovered  in  the  Bible,  for  Gideon,  when  he 
was  about  to  take  the  camp  of  the  Midianites  by  surprise  at  night,  ordered 
his  own  men  to  shout  when  they  attacked  the  enemy  whom  the  Lord 
had  delivered  into  their  hands,  "  For  the  Lord  and  for  Gideon !  " 

In  the  Middle  Ages  battle-cries  were  universal.  Most  of  them  were 
nothing  more  than  the  names  of  the  different  nobles  and  chevaliers,  supple- 
mented by  some  flattering  ejDithet  or  pious  invocation,  such  as  Mailly  ! — La 
Tremoille  ! — Bourhon,  Bourbon,  Notre  Bame  ! — Coucy,  a  la  MarveiUe  !  The 
great  barons  used  as  a  battle-cry  the  name  of  a  province,  of  a  lordship,  or  of 
an  important  town  upon  their  domains,  and  these  did  not  change  even  when 
the  town  or  lordship  changed  owners.  Under  the  Dukes  of  Burgundy  the 
Hennuyers  still  cried,  Haiitaut  au  noble  due  !  The  men  of  Gascony,  Navarre, 
and  Arragon  shouted,  Biyorre  !  Bigorre  !  as  under  the  Kings  of  Navarre  and 
of  Arragon.  The  men  of  Beauvais,  when  they  went  out  to  do  battle,  invoked 
Beaurais  lajolie !  while  those  of  Louvain  shouted,  Lourain  an  rkhe  due! 

The  battle-cries  of  certain  families  contained  allusions  to  the  charges  upon 
their  coat-of-arms,  and  Flandre  au  lion  was  the  cry  of  the  Coimts  of  Flanders, 
and  Aupeigne  d'or  (the  golden  comb)  that  of  the  lords  of  CaUant.  Another 
family  used  as  its  battle-cry  a  sort  of  exhortation  to  the  valiant,  or  of  menace 
to  the  vanquished,  without  any  special  or  generic  characteristic.  The  Counts 
of  Champagne  cried,  Passava)it  les  meillors  !  the  Chevaliers  of  Bar,  Au  feu . 


THE  ARMS  AND  EMBLEMATIC  DEVICE  OF  MARGUERITE  OF  NAVARRE. 


Miniatur<>  from  tlie  fnilinlnirc  instructive  en  la  rcliyion  chrenlienne ,  M.S.  executed  in  the  xvi""  century 
for  Miirpiierilc  of  Navarre,  and  generally  attributed  to  OeofTroy  Tory;  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


3'S 


nu  feu  !  those  of  Erie,  Cans  d'oiaeaux !  The  meaning  of  some  battle-cries 
was  evidently  to  implore  the  intercession  of  God,  of  the  Virgin,  and  of  the 
saints  during  the  tight.      The  Dukes  of  Brittany  exclaimed,  <S7.    Yrcs  !  Sf. 


Malo !  the    Dukes  of   Anjou,    <SY.    Ma 


the    Moutmorencys,  Bieii   ayde 


ail  premier    baron    chrestien !    and   the    Chastel-Montforts,    St.   3Iarie,    aie ! 
(aid  us  !) 

It  is  to  this  latter  category  of  war-cries  that  assuredly  belonged  that  of 
the  Kings  of  France,  Monijoic  St  Denis  !  the  origin  of  which  has  given  rise 


Fig.  2.5.5. — llary  Tudor,  Queen  of  England  (1.5.53 — 15.58).  A  Double  Rose  intersected  down  the 
middle,  with  a  Bundle  of  Arrows,  surrounded  with  Rays,  and  surmounted  by  a  royal  Crown. 
The  Double  Rose  is  an  allusion  to  the  Houses  of  York  and  Lancaster,  while  the  Arrows  repre- 
sent the  House  of  Arragon. 


to  so  many  conflicting  and  misleading  .statements.  One  theory  is  that  Clevis, 
giving  battle  in  the  valley  of  Conflans,  drove  back  the  enemy  to  the  foot  of  a 
tower  called  Montjoie,  and  that  he  peii^etuated  the  memory  of  his  triumph 
by  taking  Montjoie  as  his  battle-cry.  Another  theory  is  that  Clovis,  having 
invoked  the  aid  of  St.  Denis  at  the  battle  of  Tolbiac,  called  him,  in  French, 
mon  Jupiter,  mon  Joh  !  which  was  corrupted  into  Montjoie.  But,  as  a  matter 
of  fact,  Montjoie  Sf.  Denis  merely  means,  "  Follow  the  banner  of  St.  Denis," 
for  this  banner  during  battle  was  hoisted  upon  a  gilt  chariot,  as  upon  a 


3i6 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


Fig.  250.  —  Device  of 
Henry  VII.,  Kingf 
of  England  (USo 
—1509).— A  Haw- 
thoru-tree  in  flower, 
between  the  letters 
H.  E.  ("  Henricu3 
Eex"). 


Fig.  257. — Device  of  Pope  Leo  X. 
(1513-1521).— A  Yoke,  with 
the  Motto,  "  Suave." 


.  258.  —  Device  of 
Charles  IX.,  King  of 
France  (1560—1574). 
— Two  Columns  in- 
terlaced, the  emblem 
of  Piety  and  Justice 
("Pietate  et  justi- 
cia"). 


montjoie  (an  eminence  or  hillock),  that  it  might  be  visible  from  afar  while  the 


Fig.  259.- Device  ol  Henry  III.,  King  of 
France  (1574— 1589).— Three  Crowns,  le- 
presenting  those  of  France  and  Poland, 
and  that  which  he  hoped  to  obtain : 
"  Manet  ultima  ccelo." 


Fig.  260.— Device  of  the  Emperor  Charles  V. 
—While  yet  King  of  Spain  (1518)  he 
adopted  as  his  emblem  a  Sun  rising  above 
a  Zodiac,  and  as  his  Motto,  "  Nondum  in 
auge  "  (Not  yet  at  its  zenith). 


combat  was  ffoino-  on.     The  Kins-s  of  France  were  entitled  to  the  banner  of 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


3'7 


St.  Denis  in  their  quality  of  aroues  (lawyers)  of  the  abbey  of  that  name,  and 
Counts  of  the  Vexin.  Louis  VI.  was  the  first  to  go  and  take  the  oriflamme, 
which  was  no  other  than  this  banner,  in  the  basilica  of  St.  Denis,  upon  the 
altar  of  the  holy  martyrs  (which  was  called  the  iiioiifjoic),  and  his  successors 
continued  to  come  and  ask  for  it  from  the  monks  of  the  royal  abbej'  whenever 
they  were  about  to  start  upon  an  expedition,  "because,"  says  Suger,  "the 
blessed  St.  Denis  was  the  sjiecial  patron  and  jjrotector  of  the  kingdom." 
This  same  word  was  to  be  discovered  in  several  other  battle-cries,  such  as 
Monfjoie  St.  Andrieux  !  Montjoie  Anjou  !  and  others. 

War-cries  ceased  to  be  used  during  battle  when   Charles  VII.,   having 
foimded  the  ordinance  comjDanies,  disj)ensed  the  bannerets  from  the  duty  of 


Fig.  261. — Device  of  Catherine  de'  Medicis;  Uueeu  of  France,  duiing  her  Widowhood. 


leading  their  vassals  to  the  fight.  It  was  then  that  these  cries  were  inscribed 
upon  the  scroll  placed  above  the  crest,  while  underneath,  upon  another  scroll, 
appeared,  in  letters  of  gold  or  of  silver,  the  patrimonial  motto  of  the  house. 
There  was,  moreover,  this  diii'erence  between  the  battle-cry  and  the  motto — 
that  the  latter  was  not  always  hereditary,  for  in  some  cases  it  changed  at 
each  generation  even  in  the  same  family.  For  instance,  the  ordinary  motto 
of  the  house  of  Sales,  in  Savoy,  was  originally,  "  Ni  plus,  ni  moins,"  but 
several  members  of  this  family  adofited  other  mottoes.  That  of  Francis  de 
Sales,  Lord  of  Roisy,  was,  "  En  bonne  foy ;  "  that  of  John  de  Sales,  ''  Adieu, 
biens  mondains  I "  that  of  Galois  de  Sales,  "In  paucis  quies;"  that  of  St. 
Francis  de  Sales,  "  Numquam  excedet,"  signifying,  with  the  word  Charitas 
understood.  Charity  never  dies  out. 


3'8 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


In  many  cases  mottoes,  like  the  charges  on  the  shield,  are  allusive,  and 
reproduce  the  family  name  with  a  sort  of  play  upon  the  words.  Such  are 
Achay,  in  the  Franche-Comte,  "Jamais  las  d'acher;"  Vaudray,  "J'aivalu, 
vaux  et  vaudray;"  Grandson,  "A  petite  cloche,  grand  son;"  Lauras,  ia 
Dauphiny,  "Un  jour  I'auras;"  Disemieux,  "II  est  nul  qui  dise  mieux." 

Several  mottoes,  also,  contain  allusions  to  the  figures  in  the  coats-of- 
anns.  Thus  the  Simian  family,  whose  arms  are  ov,  seme  with  fleurs-de- 
lis  and  turrets  azure,  has  for  motto,  "Sustentant  lilia  turres"  (The  lUies 
support  the  turrets).  There  are  mottoes,  too,  which  evoke  the  recollection 
of  a  battle    or  of  a  proverb,    or   which   enounce  some  indefinite  and  mys- 


Fig.  262. — The  Arms  of  Anne  of  Brittany,  Queen  of  France. — An  Ermine,  pure  and  spotless, 
attached  to  the  Order  of  the  Cordeliere,  founded  by  the  Queen  for  Ladies,  with  the  Motto, 
"A  ma  vie."  The  royal  Shield  is  supported  by  an  Angel,  with  the  Motto,  "  Eogo  pro  te 
Anna  "  (Anne,  I  pray  for  thee),  and  upon  the  other  side  a  Lion  rampant,  with  these  words,  in 
allusion  to  the  ermine  of  Brittany:  "Libera  eam  de  ore  leonis"  (Deliver  it  from  the  jaws 
of  the  lion). — Miniature  from  the  "  Funerailles  d'Anne  de  Bretagne." — Manuscript  of  the 
Sixteenth  Century. — In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 

terious  allusion.  For  instance,  Antoine  de  Croy,  "  Souvenance  ; "  Jean  de 
la  Tremoille,  "  Ne  m'oubliez ! "  Johann  Schenk,  in  Germany,  "  Plutot 
rompre  que  flechir ; "  Philip  of  Burgvmdy,  after  his  marriage  with 
Isabella  of  Portugal,  "Autre  n'auray,"  an  alteration  of  the  amorous 
motto,  "  Autre  n'aviray  dame  Isabeau,  tant  que  vivray."  The  proud  mottoes 
of  the  Rohans  and  the  Coucys  are  very  well  known :  "  Roi  ne  puis,  due  ne 
daigne,  Rohan  siiis  ; "  "  Je  ne  suis  roy,  ne  due,  ne  comte  aussi,  je  suis  le  sire  de 
Coney."  Sometimes  the  mottoes  were  merely  represented  by  mute  emblems, 
such  as  the  AVIiite  Rose  of  the  house  of  York,  the  Red  Rose  of  Lancaster 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE 


319 


Fig.  263.— Jean  Le  Feron,  a  Irarncd  Fiencli  heraldic  Scholar  (1504— lo70),  presents  one  of  liia 
Works  to  King  Henry  II. — Slinialure  from  the  "Blason  d'Arnioiries,"  hy  Jehan  Le  Feron. 
—Manuscript  of  the  Sixteenth  Century,  No.  795.— In  the  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


(Fig.  255),  the   Thistle    of    Bourbdii,   and  iLe  iluskct    of   15urguiuly ;  and 
sometimes  they  comprised  both  emblems  and  in.scri2Jtions,  as  in  Itah',  where 


320 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


Camillo  Pallavicini,  member  of  an  ancient  Milanese  family,  bore  a  flower,  the 
stem  of  wbicb  was  being  nibbled  by  a  turtle,  witb  the  Italian  inscription,  "Ogni 


Fig.  264.— Banner  of  the  Calais  Innkeepers.         Fig.  265.— Banner  of  the  Amiens  Butchers. 


Fig.  266. — Banner  of  ihe  Bethuue  Tailors.         Fig.  26". — Banner  of  the  St.  Omer  Cobblers. 


Fig.  268.— Banner  of  the  St.  L6  Dyers.  Fig.  209.- Banner  of  the  Bordeaux  Upholsterers. 

belleza  ha  fine  "  (All  beauty  is  peri.shable).     Another  Italian,  Paolo  Sfortita, 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


321 


had  painted  at  the  side  of  his  blazon  an  arrow  strung  npon  the  bow,  and 
pointing  heavenwards,  with  the  words,  "  Sic  itur  ad  astra  "  (Figs.  256  to  260). 


Fig.  270.— Banner  of  the  St.  Lu  Blacksmiths.         Fi^.  271.— Banner  of  the  Tours  Slaters. 


Fig.  272.— Banner  of  the  Paris  Founders.  Fig.  273.— Banner  of  the  Lyons  Tinmen. 


Fig.  274.— Banner  of  the  Douai  Shoemakers.         Fig.  275. — Banner  of  the  Pin  and  Needle  Makers. 


The  mottoes  forming  riddles,  more  or  less  difficult  to   solve,  came  into 

T   T 


322  HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 

fashion  during  tlie  sixteenth,  century.  The  house  of  Medicis  had  in  its  arms 
a  diamond  and  three  ostrich  feathers,  with  the  motto  forming  a  Latin  pun, 
"  Super  adamas  in  pennis  "  (Above  the  diamond,  in  the  wing  feathers),  and  this 
strange  device  is  only  to  be  imderstood  by  translating  it  thus:  Always 
invincible  in  trouble. 

The  art  of  devices — ^for  it  had  become  an  art,  as  heraldry  had  become  a 
science — was  often  used  for  the  composition  of  enigmas  which  defied  the 
sagacity  of  the  solvers  of  riddles  (Fig.  276).  Pierre  de  Morvilliers,  first 
President  of  the  Paris  Parliament,  had  as  his  device  a  portcullis  connected 
with  a  Y,  and  his  name  was  expressed  by  this  figure  (Mort  Y  lies),  because 
the  portcullis  is  the  emblem  of  death,  which  makes  all  things  equal. 

Several  hereditary  devices  perpetuated  the  memory  of  some  historic  event. 
Charles  YIII.,  during  the  battle  of  Fornova  (July  15th,  1495),  when  surrounded 
by  a  mass  of  the  enemy,  was  saved  by  the  Seigneur  de  Montoison,  whose 
heroic  valour  soon  changed  the  fate  of  the  battle,  and  the  King,  after  it  was 
over,  recompensed  his  deliverer  by  giving  him  as  his  motto  the  words  which 
he  had  uttered  in  calliag  him  to  his  assistance,  "  A  la  rescousse,  Montoison ! " 
Catherine  de'  Medicis,  after  the  death  of  Henry  II.,  who  was  killed  by  the 
thrust  of  a  lance  at  a  toui'nament  (1559),  changed  her  device  and  took  a 
broken  lance,  with  the  motto,  "  Hinc  dolor,  hinc  lacrimae  "  (Hence  my  woe, 
hence  my  tears).  Christopher  Columbus,  who  discovered  America,  left  to  his 
descendants  the  noble  Spanish  motto — 

"  Por  Castille  et  por  Leon 
Nuevo  mundo  hallo  Colomb." 

(For  Castile  and  Leon,  Columbus  discovers  a  new  world.) 

At  about  the  time  that  devices  of  all  kinds  were  becoming  nimierous,  the 
custom  was  introduced  of  adding  to  coats-of-arms  sup^wrters,  or  tenants  (Fig. 
262).  The  first  of  these  names  was  given  to  the  animals  which  supported  the 
shield ;  the  second  to  the  men  of  human  form  who  held  it  up — the  angels, 
chevaliers,  heralds,  moors,  savages,  &c.  This  was  the  most  brilliant  period 
of  heraldry,  but  it  was  also  the  most  confused  and  the  most  fatal  to  this 
ancient  institution,  which  had  done  so  much  for  the  chivalry  and  the  nobility, 
as  the  excessive  exaggeration  of  heraldic  signs  was,  as  a  matter  of  course, 
favourable  to  fraud  and  usurpation  of  armorial  bearings  (Fig.  263).      This 


HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 


323 


usurpation,  which  was  generally  a  prelude  to  the  usurpation  of  titles  of 
nobility,  did  not  involve  any  other  punishment  than  a  fine — a  fact  which  is 
mentioned  in  an  ordinance  of  Charles  IX.  addressed  to  the  States  of  Orleans 
in  1560,  and  framed  as  follows: — "Those  who  shaU  falsely  usurj)  the  name 
and  title  of  nobnity,  take  or  use  crested  arms,  will  be  fined  by  our  judges, 
and  the  most  rigorous  measures  will  be  used  to  make  them  pay  these  fines." 
But,  in  spite  of  the  numerous  and  severe  decrees  of  the  Crown  against  the 
assumption  of  titles,  the  evil  increased,  and  by  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century 
the  merchants  and  the  working  mechanics,  as  well  as  the  boiu'geoisie,  took 
for  themselves  arms  and  devices  without  any  opposition  upon  the  part  of  the 


Fig.  276.— The  Anns  of  France  in  the  Fifteenth  Century.— After  a  Miniature  in  the  Missal  of 
Charles  VI.— In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


judges  of  arms,  who  exercised  an  official  .supervision  over  all  the  matters 
relating  to  the  nobility  and  their  privileges.  It  may  be  .supposed,  therefore, 
that  this  assumption  of  armorial  bearings  by  the  middle  classes  was  only 
tolerated  in  return  for  the  paj-ment  of  a  tribute  to  the  King  as  the  supreme 
dispenser  of  all  nobiliary  privileges.  The  Cro-rni  had,  moreover,  recognised 
a  sort  of  nobility  of  trade,  by  the  grant  of  statutes  to  the  workmen's  corpora- 
tions, which  showed  themselves  as  jealous  as  the  nobility  of  their  honorary 
distinctions,  and  of  the  anns  which  they  had  painted,  engraved,  or 
embroidered  upon  their  insignia  (see  Figs.  2G4  to  275),  at  a  time  when 
Montaigne  declared  in  his  "  Essays  "  that  if  "  nobility  is  a  good  and  reasonable 


324  HERALDIC  SCIENCE. 

institution,  it  is  to  be  esteemed  far  below  virtvie,"  inasmuch  as  "  it  is  a  virtue/ 
if  it  be  one,  of  an  artificial  and  visible  kiad,  dependent  upon  time  and  fortune ; 
diverse  in  form,  according  to  the  country.  ..."  The  ancient  custom  of 
solemnly  interring  the  arms  of  an  extinct  family  in  the  grave  of  its  last 
representative  had  been  abandoned  for  centuries.  Even  if  noble  famOies 
became  extinct,  they  were  resuscitated  with  their  armorial  bearings,  and 
formed  new  branches  by  substitution  of  name,  by  alliance,  or  by  usurpa- 
tion. This  was  the  cause  of  the  different  verifications  and  reforms  of  the 
nobility  which  took  place  in  the  fifteenth  century,  and  which  added  a  large 
sum  in  the  way  of  fines  and  royalties  to  the  Krug's  treasury. 

Heraldic  science  has,  however,  survived  the  noble  institutions  which  first 
brought  it  into  existence,  and  though  it  has  lost  a  part  of  its  primitive 
importance,  it  still  remains  abnost  intact  as  a  picturesque  monument  of  the 
past,  and  as  a  tradition  of  mediaeval  histoiy. 


PROVERBS. 


Antiquity  of  Proverbs  amongst  all  Nations. — ProYerba  in  the  Middle  Ages. — Solomon  and  ilarcoul. 
— The  Philosophers'  Proverbs. — ]iural  and  Vulgar  Proverbs. — Guillaume  de  Tignouville. — 
Proverbs  of  the  Villeins. — "  Dit  de  I'Apostoile." — Historical  Proverbs. — Proverbs  in  Works 
of  Prose  and  Verse. — French  Proverbs  in  the  Sixteenth  Century.— Foreign  Proverbs. — The 
Use  of  Proverbs. — Constable  de  Bourbon's  Collection  of  Proverbs. 


H^^M^ 

^^MsM 

^^^ 

1^^^ 

^B 

^■1 

R^»^^^ 

i^^^SE^^Q 

|H^^®w| 

w  1  1  M^l  H '  flfl^B.I^E^^MPr 

I^^^Si 

^s 

|^^^k% 

^y^S^P^ 

HE  popular  saj'ings  which  compose  what 
has  been  called  the  "ancient  wisdom  of 
nations  "  are  of  all  times  and  of  all  lauds, 
for  proverbs  are  to  be  found  in  the  early 
language  of  all  nations  ;  but  they  belong 
especially  to  the  Middle  Ages,  which  had 
collected  and  preserved  them  as  a  precious 
legacy  of  the  early  ages  and  pcojDles  in  the 
world's  history. 

Every  nation  gives  its  own  special 
impress,  so  to  speak,  to  its  familiar  proverbs. 
The  Italian  proverb  is  witty  and  subtle ; 
that  of  the  Spaniards  haughty  and  bold.  The  French  proverb  is  incisive 
and  satirical :  originating  in  the  lower  classes,  it  very  often  attacks  the  rich  and 
the  powerful,  and  not  unf requently  is  expressed  in  language  the  liberty  of  which 
has  developed  into  license.  In  England,  Germany,  and  in  all  Northern  nations 
the  proverbs  are  severe,  cold,  formal,  and  pedantic.  The  proverb  is  used  by 
aR  classes  of  society  to  characterize  an  individual  act,  or  some  general  or  sjaccitic 
occurrence,  as  occasion  requires.  It  is  never  explained,  but  always  understood. 
Proverbs  passed,  as  by  a  natural  transition,  from  speech  into  writing,  and 
they  are  very  abundant  in  the  first  works  written  in  French,  though  the 
worb  proverb  itself  does  not  appear  to  be  of  earlier  date  than  the  thirteenth 
century.     Before  this  period,  the  word  pro'verbium,  though  used  by  all  authors 


326  PROVERBS. 


who  wrote  good  Latin,  had  no  better  equi'S'alent  in  French  than  rcHpit  or 
reprovier.  In  the  oldest  version  of  the  Bible,  in  the  twelfth  century,  the 
passage  in  the  First  Book  of  Kings  (chap,  xix.),  "Unde  et  exivit  pro- 
verbium,"  the  ^qx^  proverVmm  is  translated  res^i^. 

The  Bible  was  then  The  Book,  which  was  read  and  learnt  by  heart  before 
any  other,  and  which  served  as  a  type  for  various  literary  compositions.  It 
is  only  natural,  therefore,  that  King  Solomon,  who  may  be  said  to  have  given 
the  model  for  this  kind  of  literature  in  his  Book  of  Proverbs,  should  have 
been  regarded  as  an  oracle  to  be  consulted  with  respect  in  the  Middle  Ages. 
Besides,  the  Jewish  legend  which  represented  Solomon  as  the  King  of  Magic, 
and  which  made  him  supreme  over  the  whole  of  nature,  had  become  an  article 
of  faith  with  the  Christians  as  well  as  with  the  Jews.  According  to  this  legend, 
the  Queen  of  the  Ants  settled  one  day  upon  the  hand  of  the  King  of  Israel, 
and  revealed  to  him  the  secrets  of  eternal  truth.  One  of  the  first  collec- 
tions of  French  proverbs,  published  in  the  Middle  Ages,  was  dedicated  to 
Solomon,  who  is  represented  ia  it  as  the  type  of  Divine  wisdom,  opposite 
to  a  man  named  Marcol,  or  Marcoid,  who  is  the  representative  of  human  reason 
(Fig.  277).  There  is  a  dialogue  in  rhjnne  between  the  two.  The  IsracKtish 
King  utters  some  weighty  saying,  and  Marcol  answers  him  with  an  analogous 
axiom  embodying  the  rough  common  sense  of  the  people,  and  generally 
expressed  in  homely  language.  The  "  Dictz  (sayings)  de  Salomon  et  Marcol," 
originally  composed  in  Latin,  were  translated  into  aU  languages  during  the 
Middle  Ages,  and  the  French  version  probably  dates  from  the  twelfth  century. 
One  verse  of  it  runs — 

"  '  Qui  sages  bom  sera 
Ici  trop  ne  parlera.' 
Ce  dist  Salomon. 
'  Qui  ja  mot  ne  dira 
Grand  noise  (dispute)  ne  fera.' 
Marcol  lui  respont." 

The  popularity  of  these  rhymed  proverbs,  which  were  continually  being 
revised,  added  to,  and  modified,  is  proved  by  the  multitude  of  editions  which 
appeared  at  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century.  It  is  probable  that  the  original 
Latin  was  written,  in  the  tenth  or  eleventh  century,  by  a  student  in  the 
ecclesiastical  schools  of  Paris,  which  undertook  to  vulgarise  in  this  way  the 


PROVERBS. 


327 


Book  of  Proverbs  and  the  Book  of  "Wisdom,  which  latter  was  also  attributed 
to  Solomon. 


Fig.  277. — Solomon   and  ilarcoul.— Fac-simile  of  a  AV'ood  Engraving  in  the  "  DicU  do  Salomon 
et  Marcoul." — Edition  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — In  the  National  Lihrarj',  Talis, 


It  is  very  probable,  also,  that  this  name  of  ilarcol,  or  Marcoul,  or  Marcon, 


328  PROVERBS. 


given  to  the  second  person  in  the  dialogue,  was  no  other  than  Marcus,  a  cele- 
brated philosopher  of  the  Middle  Ages,  who  was  believed  to  be  Marcus 
Porcius  Cato,  called  the  Censor,  or  Marcus  Cato,  his  son,  who  were  considered 
to  be  the  joint  authors  of  the  "Moral  Distiches"  ("  Disticha  de  Moribus") 
which  had  since  the  seventh  centuiy  been  employed  as  works  of  education, 
but  which  should  rather  be  attributed  to  a  monk  named  Valerius  or  Diony- 
sius,  and  surnamed  Cato.  The  celebrity  of  these  distiches,  which  were  read 
and  expounded  in  the  schools,  remained  as  great  as  ever  all  through  the 
Middle  Ages.  They  were  more  than  once  translated,  jDaraphrased,  or  imitated 
in  French  verse  during  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries,  and  they  were 
frequently  reprinted  in  verse  during  the  fifteenth  century  under  the  title  of 
the  "  Grand  Chaton,"  and  again  at  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth,  by  Peter 
Grosnet,  under  the  title  of  "  Motz  dores  du  grand  et  saige  Caton." 

There  was  also  in  the  twelfth  century  another  collection  of  proverbs,  or  of 
proverbial  philosophy,  which  long  had  a  great  reputation  in  the  schools,  and 
which  was  several  times  translated  into  French  for  the  use  of  the  upper  as  of 
the  lower  classes,  neither  of  which  had  much  knowledge  of  Latin.  This 
collection,  known  as  the  "  Philosophers'  Proverbs,"  contained  a  selection  of 
sayings  (sentences)  in  verse,  most  of  which  were  apocryphal,  attributed  to  the 
most  noted  personages  of  ancient  times,  and  in  particular  to  various  Greek 
and  Latin  authors  who  were  comprised  in  the  category  of  j)hilosophers.  Thus 
Virgil,  Ovid,  and  Horace  appeared  in  this  compilation  between  Moses  and 
Solomon  upon  the  one  hand,  and  Homer  and  iEsop  upon  the  other  (Fig.  278). 
Afterwards  these  moral  sayings  were  translated  into  French  with  the  title  of 
"  Dits  des  Philosophes,"  but  though  they  doubtless  had  some  resemblance 
to  certain  passages  of  the  authors  to  whom  they  were  attributed,  they  had 
more  in  common,  when  moulded  into  verse,  with  the  dialogue  of  Solomon  and 
Marcoul,  as  the  following  lines,  which  claim  to  be  an  imitation  of  Juvenal, 
will  show : — 

"  Tant  vaut  amour  comme  argent  dure : 
Quant  argent  fault  (manque),  amour  est  nule. 
Qui  despent  le  sien  foUement, 
Si  n'est  ames  (aime)  de  nule  gent." 

In  the  fifteenth  century,  Guillaume  de  Tignonville,  Provost  of  Paris,  in 
the  reign  of  Charles  VI.  found  time,  amidst  his  other  numerous  occupations. 


PRU  VERBS. 


329 


to  make  a  fresh  translation  of  the  "  Dits  ties  Philosophes  "  in  verse,  with 
numerous  additions,  to  which  he  appended  biogrui)hical  notices  in  prose 
of  the  jihilosophers,  amongst  whom  he  included  not  only  warriors  like 
Alexander  the  Great  and  Ptolemj',  King  of  Egypt,  but  imaginary  per- 
sonages, such  as  Siniicratis,  Fonydes,  Archasan,  and  Longinon.  His  book 
was  a  great  success,  for,  in  addition  to  the  many  manuscripts  with 
mmiatures,  the  printers  of  the  fifteenth  century  published  several  editions 
of  it. 

These  dilfereut  collections  of  proverbs,  attributed  to  such  famous  men  as 


Fig.  278.— The  Wolf  cheating  the  Donkey.— Fac-simUe  of  a  Wood  Engraving  from  the 
"  Dyalogue  des  Creatures"  (Gouda,  Gerart  Leeu,  1482,  in  foUo).— In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise 
Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 

Solomon,  Cato,  and  the  ancient  Greek  and  Latin  philosophers,  may  be  looked 
upon  as  the  fruits  of  scholastic  erudition  and  literary  invention,  while  other 
collections,  which  had  an  equally  great  success  at  the  same  period,  seem  to 
emanate  more  directly  from  the  homely  good  sense  and  native  wit  of  the 
people,  with  all  their  facetious  and  picturesque  qualities.  It  is  not  necessary 
to  mention  more  than  three  or  four  of  these  coUections,  which,  in  spite  of 

u  u 


330  PROVERBS. 


tlieir  immense  popularity  at  the  time,  were  not,  with  one  exception,  reproduced 
by  the  printers  of  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries.  They  are,  however, 
original  proveibs,  which  owe  nothing  to  the  writers  of  Greece  or  of  E,ome,  and 
which  bear  the  Gallic  stamp  of  our  ancestors.  The  oldest  of  these  collections 
is  entitled,  "  Vulgar  and  Moral  Proverbs."  It  is  satisfactory  to  find  that 
the  six  hundred  proverbs  which  an  unkno^vn  hand  put  together  five  or  six 
centuries  ago  still  display,  notwithstanding  the  change  which  has  taken  place 
in  manners,  ideas,  and  even  in  language,  a  clear  and  plain  text  which,  with 
the  exception  of  a  few  differences  in  spelling,  might  be  understood  by  the 
general  body  of  modern  readers.  Some  of  these  proverbs  are  :  "  Mieux  vaut 
un  tien  que  devix  tu  I'auras  "  (xl  bird  ia  the  hand  is  worth  two  in  the  bush) ; 
"  Ki  donne  tost  il  donne  deux  fois  "  (Bis  dat,  qui  cito  dat) ;  "  Ki  plus  a  plus 
convoite  "  (The  more  one  has  the  more  one  wants) ;  "  Qui  petit  a  petit  perd  " 
(He  who  possesses  little  can  lose  little) ;  "II  fait  mal  esveiller  le  chien  qui 
dort "  (It  is  well  to  let  a  sleeping  dog  lie)  ;  "  On  oblie  plus  tost  le  mal  que  le 
bien  "  (An  evil  action  is  remembered  longer  than  a  good  one). 

The  second  selection,  which  must  have  been  contemporary  with  the  above, 
seems  to  have  contained  more  homely  proverbs,  expressed  in  blunter  terms. 
This  piece,  entitled  "Proverbes  aux  Yilains,"  is  divided  into  unequal  stanzas 
of  six,  eight,  or  nine  lines  of  rhyme,  and  some  stanzas  comprise  several  pro- 
verbs, others  only  one.  This  collection  forms  a  pell-mell  of  old  saws  which 
the  people  Avere  very  fond  of  repeating,  and  which  enlivened  them  amidst 
their  sorrows  and  labours.  In  order  fully  to  understand  the  meaning  of  these 
proverbs,  the  tone  of  which  is  a  mixture  of  grave  and  gay,  it  is  necessary 
first  to  understand  the  proper  meaning  of  the  word  villein,  which  was,  as  a 
rule,  taken  in  bad  part,  as  synonymous  with  coward,  poltroon,  full  of  envy, 
do-nothing,  &c.  The  villein  was  the  man  of  the  people  in  the  worst  acceptation 
of  the  term,  as  the  subjoined  proverb  will  show : — 


"  Oignez  villain,  il  vous  poindra. 
Poignez  \'illain,  il  vous  oindia  .  .   . 
Villain  affame  derny  enrage  .  .  . 
Villain  enrichy  ne  connoist  pus  d'ainis." 


The  third  collection  does  not  date  so  far  back  as  the  two  prcAaous  ones, 
though  it  consists  of  ancient  proverbs  in  prose,  with  the  title,  "  Common 
Proverbs,"  of  which  there  are  about  seven  bimdred  and  fifty,  arranged  m 


PROVERBS. 


li^ 


alptiibetical  order  by  J.  de  la  Veprie,  prior  of  Clairvaux.  The  name  of  the 
compiler  is  a  guarantee  for  the  decency  of  these  proverbs,  and  this  j^crhnps 
was  one  of  the  causes  of  the  success  of  this  little  collection,  of  which  several 
Gothic  editions  appeared  at  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  centurJ^ 


Fig.  279.— A  Court  Jester.— Miniaturo  from  a  French  Bihie.— JIanuscript  nf  the  Fifteenth 
Century. — In  the  Library  of  iil.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


The  "Dit  dc  I'Apostoilc,"  which  must  be  mentioned,  (hough  it  is  in 
reality  a  collection  of  popidar  sayings  rather  than  of  j)roveibs,  is  nl  nuicli  loss 
ancient  date,  belonging  as  it  probably  does  to  the  thirteenth  ccnlury.       1  he 


332- 


PROVERBS. 


"Apostoile"   (apostle)   is  the  name  vulgarly  given  to  the  Pope,  and  it  is 
the  Pope  who,  in  this  piece  of  verse,  decides  as  to  the  titles  and  epithets 


Fig.  280.— Device  of  Louis  XTI.,  King  of 
France  (1498—1.515).  A  Porcupine; 
witli  the  Motto,  "  Cominns  et  eminug  " 
(From  far  and  near) .  This  was  the  de- 
vice of  his  grandfather,  who,  in  1397, 
instituted  the  Order  of  the  Porcupine. 


Fig.  281. — Francois  I.,  King  of  France  (1515— 
1547). — A  Salamander  amidst  the  Flames, 
-with  the  Motto,  "Nutrisco  et  extinguo"  (I 
feed  on  it  and  extinguish  it).  It  was  the 
popular  belief  that  this  salamander  lived  in 
the  fire,  and  could  extinguish  it. 


which   are  snitable   to   the   principal    to-rnis    of    France   and    the   different 
countries  of  Europe.     These  epithets  accord  with  the  origin,  the  customs, 


Fig.  282.— Device  of  the  Flemish  Gneux  (1566).— A  Wallet  held  by  two  Hands  clasped, 
with  the  Motto,  "  Jusques  a  porter  la  besace." 


the  physical   position,   the   moral    state,  and    the   special   characteristics  of 
the  \<mvi  or  country.     The  veritable  physiognomy  of  persons  and  things  is 


PROVERBS.  333 


expressed  by  proverbial  sayings,  and  this  feudal  society  is  faithfully  repre- 
sented in  this  simple  enumeration  :  "  Concile  d'Apostoile,"  "  Parliaments  of 
the  King,"  "Assembly  of  Chevaliers,"  "Company  of  Clerks,"  "Beuverie 
de  Bourgeois,"  "  Crowd  of  Villeins,"  &c.  We  sec  that  at  that  time  proverbs 
were  couched  in  a  very  few  words,  but  those  few  expressing  a  great  deal. 

The  transition  from  these  plain  proverbs,  which  express  some  moral  truth 
or  ordinary  idea,  to  the  historical  proverb  (Figs.  280  and  281),  which  mentions 
some  remarkable  event  to  celebrate  the  name  of  any  remarkable  person,  or 
contains  an  allusion  to  the  special  characteristics  of  a  country,  a  province,  or 
a  town,  is  a  verj-  natural  one.  One  might  imagine  that  the  people  were  bent 
upon  writing  in  this  concrete  and  striking  shape  the  history  of  the  facts 
which  seemed  worth  rcmcmberina:. 

The  ancient  proverbs  relating  to  France  are  numerous,  for  there  is 
not  a  town  or  a  village  which  has  not  one  referring  to  it.  In  the  "  Dit  de 
I'Apostoile  "  are  to  be  found  six  concerning  the  Flemish  (Fig.  282),  five  about 
the  Gascons,  eighteen  about  the  Xonnans,  twelve  about  Orleans,  thirty 
about  Paris,  and  so  forth.  Each  of  these  proverbs  would  afford  matter 
for  an  interesting  dissertation  from  the  double  point  of  view  of  history  and 
philosophy. 

We  have  already  (see  chapter  on  the  Science  of  Heraldry)  spoken  of  the 
heraldic  devices  and  mottoes,  but  there  are  also  a  certain  number  of  popular 
sayings  which  relate  to  the  nobility  of  the  ancient  provinces  of  France.  For 
Burgundy  : — 

"  Rithc  de  Chalons, 

Noble  de  Vienne, 

Preux  de  Verg}-, 

Fin  de  Neuchatel, 
Et  la  maison  de  Beaufremont 
D'oii  sent  sortia  les  bona  barons." 

For  Brittany : — 

"  Antiqnite  de  Pcnhoet, 
Vaillaiice  de  Chastel, 
Bichease  de  Kcrman, 
Chcvalerie  do  Kergoumadec." 

These  are  allusions  to  the  qualities  of  the  diiferent  places  and  families 
mentioned. 

The  ])rov('il)s  relating  to   tlie  names  of  nicji   of  tincicnt   oi'   modern  times 


334  PROVERBS. 


haye,  as  a  rule,  some  satirical  meaning: — "Old as  Herod  ; "  ''Homer  sometimes 
nods ;"  "  Hippocrates  says  jes,  and  Galen  says  no." 

But  a  better  idea  can  be  formed  of  the  tendency  of  the  French  proverbs 
which  were  current  in  the  Middle  Ages,  and  which  held  their  own  almost 
intact  until  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century,  by  quoting  a  few  of  them 
which,  with  slight  alterations  in  spelling,  are  still  in  use  : — 

"  A  beau  parleur  closes  oreilles. 
A  chacun  oiseau  son  nid  lui  est  beau. 
A  dur  ane  dur  aguillon. 

Aide-toi,  DIeu  te  aidera  (God  helps  those  who  help  themselves).  _ 
Amis  valent  mieux  que  argent. 

A  Dieu,  a  pere  et  a  maitre,  nul  ne  peut  rendre  equivalent. 
Au  besoin  voit-on  I'ami  (A  friend  in  need  is  a  friend  indeed). 
Besoin  fait  vieille  trotter. 
Bon  fceur  ne  peut  mentir. 
Bienfaict  n'est  jamais  perdu. 
Bonne  vie  embellit. 

Borgne  est  roy  entre  aveugles  (Amongst  the  blind  the  one-oyed  man  is  king). 
Gain  de  cordonnier  entre  par  I'huis  et  ist  (sort)  par  le  fumier. 
Ce  n'est  pas  or  tout  ce  qui  luit  (All  is  not  gold  that  glitters). 
Celuy  scjait  assez  qui  vit  bien. 
De  brebis  comptees  mnnge  bien  le  loup, 
De  nouveau  tout  est  beau. 
Diligrnce  passe  science. 
La  faim  chasse  le  loup  hors  bois. 
La  nuit  porte  con  sail. 

La  plus  mechante  roue  du  char  crie  toujours. 
Les  petits  sont  sujets  aux  lois,  les  grands  en  font  a  lour  guise. 
L'eau  dormant  vault  pis  que  I'eau  courant  (Still  waters  run  deep). 
Tout  vray  n'est  pas  bon  a  dire  (The  truth  is  not  always  welcome). 
Trop  J  arler  nuit,  frop  grater  cuit. 

Vin  vieux,  ami  vieux  et  or  vieux  sont  aimes  en  tons  lieux  (Old  wine,  old  friends,  and  old  gold 
are  always  appreciated)." 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  proverbs  were  at  one  time  much  used  in 
common  parlance,  and  this  must  have  lent  an  originality  and  a  piquancy  to 
conversation.  The  proverb,  which  represented,  so  to  speak,  general  opmion, 
was  perpetually  recurring  in  conversation,  which  was  animated  by  being  thus 
impregnated  with  the  personal  thought  of  the  speaker.  Most  of  the  proverbs 
originated  with  the  peoi^le,  but  they  were  used  by  the  nobles  and  the  bourgeois, 
and  they  soon  passed  from  conversation  into  writing,  and  were  quoted  by  the 
greatest  authors. 

Thus  i]i  the  thirteenth  century  many  sermons  and  many  pieces  of  poetry 


PROVERBS.  335 


began  with  a  proverb,  or  even  by  several  pi'overbs.  The  Trouvere,  Chrestien 
(le  Troyes,  commences  his  description  of  the  Quest  of  the  Holy  Grail,  iu  the 
romance  entitled  "  Perceval,"  with  the  following  proverbs  : — 

'■  Qui  petit  seme  petit  cuelt, 
Et  qui  onques  reeoillir  voelt, 
En  tel  lieu  sa  seinance  eapiinde 
Ciue  fruit  a  cent  dobles  li  rande : 
Car  en  terre  qui  rien  ne  vault, 
Bonne  semance  i  seche  et  fault." 

The  same  author  also  conmiences  his  romance  of  "  Erie  et  Enide  "  with  the 
proverb — 

"  Li  villains  dist,  en  son  respit, 
Que  tel  chose  a  Ten  ea  despit, 
Qui  mult  valt  mielx  que  Ton  ne  cuide." 

The  examjjle  of  the  celebrated  Chrestien  de  Troyes  was  naturally  followed 
by  his  contemporaries,  and  the  author  of  the  well-known  romance,  "  Baiidoin 
de  Sebourc,  third  King  of  Jerusalem,"  tenuinates  each  stanza  of  his  long 
poem  with  a  jjroverb.  He  in  his  turn  was  imitated  by  several  writers,  and 
there  are  many  pieces  of  poetry,  dating  from  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth 
centuries,  in  which  the  proverb  recurs  at  the  end  of  each  stanza  ;  amongst 
others,  in  the  "  C(jm25lainte  "  of  twenty-two  couplets,  which  the  Paris  students 
comjjosed,  in  1381,  against  Hugh  Aubriot,  Provost  of  Paris,  out  of  spite 
for  his  severit)'  towards  them,  and  also  in  the  ballad  against  the  English, 
which  was  written  in  verse  by  Alain  Chartier  (1449),  after  the  capture  of 
Fougeres. 

Another  jiroof  of  the  large  place  given  to  jjroverbs  in  the  very  best  books 
is  to  be  found  in  the  old  "  Chronique  de  Pains,"  the  author  of  which  is  not 
known  to  us,  though  of  all  the  historic  writings  of  the  thirteenth  century  his 
are  at  once  the  most  remarkable  for  their  veracity  and  dramatic  stjde.  The 
author  could  not  have  witnessed  the  events  in  the  reign  of  Philip  Augustus 
and  of  iSt.  Louis  which  he  describes,  yet  he  reproduces  the  true  character- 
istics of  the  period  when  he  typifies  the  principal  occurrences  by  means 
of  plain  proverbs.  After  pointing  out  tlio  imprudence  of  the  King  of 
Spain,  who  attacked  the  doughty  Richard  Caur-de-Lion,  King  of  England, 
he  comes  to  the  conclusion  that  "  tant  grate  chievre,  que  mal  gist  ;"  and  in 


336 


PROVERBS. 


another  part,  when  he  represents  Philip  Augustus  as  having  set  out  with  a 
small  escort,  thinking  that  Eichard  had  not  yet  disembarked  in  France 
he  borrows  from  the  "  Dit  des  Villains "  a  proverb  afterwards  put  in  the 
mouth  of  Sancho  Panza  :  "  En  un  muis  de  quidance,  n'a  pas  plein  pot  de 
sapience." 

Proverbs  were  applied  to  history  (see  Figs.  283  and  284),  and  they  also 
had  a  large  place  in  the  comic  theatre  of  the  fifteenth  century.  The  farce  of 
Maitre  Pathelin,  attributed  alternately  to  Pierre  Blanchet  and  to  Francois 
Villon,  abounds  in  vulgar  proverbs,  which  add  great  zest  to  the  dialogue. 
The  lawyer  Pathelin  goes  ofE  with  a  piece  of  cloth,  which  the  shopkeeper 


Fig.  283. — Device  of  Louis,  Dake  of  Orleans 
(1406).— A  knotted  Stick,  with  the  Motto, 
"  Je  I'envy,"  a  term  used  in  the  game  of 
dice,  signifying,  "I  utter  defiance."  This 
was  meant  as  a  defiance  to  Jean  sans  Peur. 


Fig.  284. — Device  of  Jean  sans  Peur,  Duke  of 
Burgundy  (1406).— A  Plane,  with  the 
Motto,  in  Flemish,  "Hie  houd"  (I  have 
him),  which  was  a  reply  to  the  challenge 
of  the  Duke  of  Orleans. 


Gruillaume  is  induced,  by  his  specious  talk,  to  sell  him  on  credit ;  but  though 
he  succeeds  in  satisfying  even  the  judge  that  he  had  not  cheated  the  shop- 
keeper, he  is  in  turn  made  the  dupe  of  a  humble  shepherd,  whom  he  had 
taught  how  to  hoodwink  the  judge,  and  obtain  an  acquittal  for  a  robbery  even 
more  impudent  than  his  own.  The  moral  of  the  comedy  is  comprised  in  the 
proverb — 

"  Or  n'es^-il  si  fort  entendeur 
Qui  ne  trouve  plus  fort  vendeur." 


PROVERBS. 


337 


It  may  be  said  of  this  farce,  which  was  in  great  favour  when  first  written, 
that  each  line  is  redolent  of  Gallic  proverbs,  and  that  for  nioi'e  than  three 
centuries  the  jjeople  of  Paris  adopted  the  proverbial  sayings  which  it  contains. 
Moreover,  most  of  the  farces  played  by  the  Pont-Alais  troupe,  by  the  clerks 
of  the  Basoche,  by  the  brotherhood  of  the  Mere  Sotte,  and  by  other  strolling 
bands,  were  fidl  of  common  and  vulgar  proverbs  which  excited  the  hearty 
laughter  of  the  audience. 

The  proverb  also  prevailed  in  all  kinds  of  poetry,  and  especially  in 
that  which  addressed  itself  to  the  people.  Francois  Villon,  himself 
a  true  Parisian,  bore  this  in  mind  when  he  inserted  in  his  two  "  Testa- 
ments "  a  number  of  popular  sayings  and  adages  which  had  become, 
or  were  fitted  to  become,  proverbs.  Indeed,  his  ballads  are,  in  reality, 
an  ingenious  jjarajshrase  of  the  rhymed  jjroverb  which  forms  the  refrain, 
as  in  the  ballad  "Dames  du  temps  jadis,"  which  contains  the  oft-quoted 
hne — 

"  Mais  oil  sont  les  neiges  J'antan  ?  " 
(Where  are  last  year's  snows  ?) 

It  ia  not  surprising  that  Pierre  Gringoire,  who  had  long  been  at  the  head 
of  the  dramatic  association  of  the  Mere  Sotte,  before  becoming  herald  of  arms 
at  the  court  of  Lorraine,  gave  a  large  place  to  j^roverbs  in  all  his  works. 
Many  of  his  jioetical  compositions  are  merel)-  collections  of  rhymed  proverbs  ; 
amongst  others,  the  "Menus  Projjos,"  the  "  Abus  du  Monde,"  and  especially 
the  "Fantaisies  de  Mere  Sotte."  This  last  collection,  the  best  known  of  all 
terminates  thus : — 

"  Pcmme  est  I'ennemy  de  I'amy, 
Femrae  est  peche  inevitable, 
Fenime  est  familier  ennemy, 
Femme  deceit  plus  que  le  diable.   .   .   . 
Femme  eat  tempeste  de  maison.  .   .  . 
Femme  est  le  serpent  des  serpens."   .  .   . 


Prince  Charles  of  Orleans,  who  was  a  court  poet,  and  who  composed 
nothing  but  ballads  and  roundelays  for  the  young  nobles  and  young  dames  of 
France  and  England,  did  not  think  it  undignified  to  embody  in  them  several 
popular  proverbs,  which  were  pearls  picked  up  from  the  dungheaji.  Amongst 
others,  he  quoted  the  proverb — 


338 


PROVERBS. 


"  Jeu  qui  trop  dure  ne  raut  rien  .   .  . 
II  convient  que  trop  parler  nuise.   .  .   . 
Chose  qui  plaist  est  a  moitie  vendue."  .  .  . 

When  in  the  fifteenth,  century  French  literature  began  to  abound  with 
tales,  stories,  joyeux  clevis,  menus  projMS,  jiaradoxes,  and  other  works  known 
under  the  general  title  oifaceties,  proverbs  naturally  took  their  place  ia  the 
list  as  being  quite  in  harmony  with  the  genius  and  tendencies  of  the  people : 
so  much  so,  that  skilful  prose-writers  became  rather  too  fond  of  embodying 
proverbs  in  their  works,  and  many  of  these  adages  ai'e  enshrined  in  Antoine 
de  la  Sale's  novel,  "  Jehan  de  Saintre,"  and  in  the  "  Cent  Nouvelles  nouvelles," 


Fig.  2S5.— Shoemaker  fitting  a  Shoe.— Copied  after  one  of  the  Stalls  called  Miseric 
Choir  of  Rouen  Cathedral  (Fifteenth  Century). 


;  in  the 


by  King  Louis  XI.  In  the  taste  for  proverbs  the  sixteenth  century  was  not 
behind  its  predecessors,  and  poets  such  as  Clement  Marot  and  Antoiae  de 
Baif,  narrators  such  as  Rabelais  and  Noel  Dufail,  polemical  writers  such  as 
Henry  Estienne,  and  satirists  like  the  author  of  the  "  Satyre  Menippee,"  were 
very  well  versed  in  this  science.  The  proverb,  in  fact,  may  be  termed  the 
passport  of  all  true  ideas,  which,  expressed  as  a  proverb,  assumed,  as  it  was 
thought,  a  more  striking  and  vivid  shape,  and  became  better  impressed  upon 
the  memory. 


rROVERBS. 


l^''^ 


Looking  to  -what  took  place  in  other  parts  of  EuroiDe,  we  find  that  pro- 
verbial literature  was  alike  fruitful,  though  in  each  case  the  produce  was  of 
native  growth,  iSjjaiu  and  Italy  being  the  countries  whose  proverbs  have  the 
greatest  similarity  to  those  of  France.  England  had  not  so  many  pro\'erbs, 
but  those  of  English  origin  are  specially  remarkable  for  that  Britannic 
humour  which  is  not  to  be  met  with  elsewhere,  and  which  lends  great  ori- 
ginality to  her  proverbs.  Such  are  :  "  If  one  knew  what  prices  were  going 
to  rise,  one  woiild  not  need  to  be  in  trade  more  than  a  year;"  "  Exchange 
is  no  robbery;"  "God  sent  us  meat,  and  the  devil  sent  the  cooks;"  "The 
devil  makes  his  Christmas  pudding  with  attorneys'  fingers  and  lawyers' 
tongues." 


Fig.  286.— The  Shoemaker  und  his  Customer. — Copied  after  one  of  the  StaUs  called  Misiricordes 
in  the  Choir  of  lioiien  Cathedral  (Fifteenth  Century). 


In  painting,  sculjiture  (Figs.  285  and  286),  and  in  nearly  all  other 
branches  of  art  were  rej^roduced  the  figurative  exjjressions  implied  by  pro- 
verbs. Pictures,  drawings,  engravings,  and  tapestry  were  all  emf)loyed  in  the 
mterpretation  of  these  proverbs,  which  were  also  to  be  found  engraved  upon 
the  blades  of  swords  and  of  daggers,  and  upon  the  helmets  and  breast-plates. 
Medals  and  counters  were  coined  with  proverbs  on  them,  and  they  were  also 
worn  in  the   shajje  of  embroidered  sashes   and    scarfs  by  persons  of   both 


34° 


PROVERBS. 


sexes.  Thejr  were  inserted,  also,  iu  tlie  stained-g-lass  Aviudows,  aud  upon  the 
carved  furniture  (Fig-.  287),  as  also  upon  drinking- glasses  and  other  articles  of 
daily  use.  One  of  the  rooms  in  Agnes  Sorel's  Chateau  de  Beaute  was  paved 
with  squares  of  painted  delf ,  upon  which  were  inscribed  witty  proverbs.  Many 
shopkeepers'  sign-boards  displayed  proverbs  suitable  to  their  trade,  and  it  was 
the  custom  of  booksellers  and  printers  to  add  a  proverb  to  the  tokens  which 


^.  !,\iiJ'ijN\l 


/iL''ja/ 


Fig.  287.— A  Comb,  made  of  Carved  Wood,  of  the  Fifteenth  Century.  "Upon  one  side  are  the  words 
"  Prenes  en  gie,"  and  upon  the  other,  "  Ce  petit  doun." — In  the  Collection  of  M.  Achille 
Jubinal. — In  the  centre  of  the  inscription  is  a  puzzle,  representing  a  flower,  a  flaming  heart, 
and  an  arm  holding  a  dart,  with  the  two  letters  M.  P.  It  was  colloquially  said  of  a  passionate 
man  that  he  would  kill  a  mercer  for  a  comb. 


they  placed  upon  the  title-page  of  their  books  (Figs.  288,  289,  and  29o). 
Some  of  these  proverbs  were  facetious,  but  most  of  them  were  of  a  graver 
kind 

There  are  to  be  found  in  several  public  libraries  various  collections  of  pro- 


PROVERBS. 


3+1 


Beneath  this  riddle  is  the  followin<j  explanation  :  — 

"  Let  us  salute  Maiy  praying  for  Jesus  on  the  cross  ; 
Let  us  hope  for  his  peace  in  o'lr  hear'.s, 
I  have  given  my  heart  to  God. 
I  hope  to  gain  Paradise, 
Praise  be  to  God." 

Fig.  288.— Riddle  talien  from  the  "  Heures  de  Nostrcdame,"  printed  by  Guillaume  Godait, 
Bookseller  at  Paris,  in  1513. 


verbs,  represented  by  miniatures  or  drawings  executed  with  the  pen,  and 
doing  great  honour  to  the  talents  of  their  unknown  authors  ;  but  we  will  only 
mention    out    of    all    these    a    curious    collection    of    water-colour    drawinji's 


Fig.  289. — Token  of  Jehan  de  Brie,  in  the  "  Heuree  a  I'usaige  de  Paris,"  printed  by  Jehiin 
Bignon  in  1612. — This  strange  riddle  is  to  be  trjnslatcd,  "  In  vico  eancti  Jacobi,  a  la 
Limace.     Cy  me  vend  et  achate." 


342 


PROVERBS. 


Fig.  290.— Drawings  of  Proverbs,  Adages,  &c. — Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century  (No.  4,316, 
Fonda  La  Valliere,  44) . — In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 

executed  by  the  Constable  cle  Bourbon,  at  the  beginning  of  Francis  I.'s 
reign,  and  now  preserved  in  the  Paris  National  Library  (Fonds  La  ValHere, 
Department    of    Manuscripts).      This    handsome    book    contains    sixty-one 


'  Dieu  veult  sou-ventesfois  permettre 


Guoy  qu'il  en  pent  advenir,  mettre 
La  charette  devant  les  boeufs." 


L'homme  perir,  qui  dist ;  Je  veuls, 

Fig.  291,— Drawings  of  Proverbs,  Adages,  &c.— Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century  (No.  4,316, 
Fonds  La  Valliere,  44).— In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


PROVERBS. 


343 


proverbs  illustrated  witt  great  ingenuity.  He  whom  the  artist  has  sur- 
named  "  Margaritas  ante  porcos  "  (a  proverb  taken  from  the  Old  Testament),  is 
represented  by  a  herd  of  jiigs  upsetting  a  basket  of  flowers  (Fig.  29U),  with 
the  French  distich — 

•'  Belles  raijons  qui  sont  mal  entendues 
Eessemblunt  fleurs  a  pourceaux  estendues." 


'  Je  sui8  Fauveau  qui  d«^sire  a  toufe  heure 
Estre  estrilk-  et  devant  et  darriere. 
De  m'estriller  qui  ne  ecet  1 1  inaniere 
A  coup  pert  temps  et  trop  en  vain  labeure.' 


j    Fig.  292.— Drawings  of  Proverbs,  Adages,  &c.— Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century  (No.  4,316, 
Fonds  La  Valliere,  44). — In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


344 


PRO]-ERBS. 


Amongst  the  otlier  striking  compositions  in  this  collection  are  those  which 
relate  to  the  following  proverbs  (Fig.  291)  : — "Tant  va  le  pot  a  I'eau,  qu'il 
brise"  (The  pitcher  maj^  go  to  the  well  once  too  often) ;  "Mai  siir  mal  n'est 
pas  sante  "  (Two  wrongs  do  not  make  a  right) ;  "  En  forgeant  on  deviant 
forgeron  ;"  "A  petit  mercier  petit  panier."  Each  pi-overb  in  this  collection 
has  a  rhymed  quatrain  explaining  the  drawing.  The  inscription  in  verse 
which  is  placed  at  the  foot  of  Constable  Bourbon's  portrait  informs  us  that 
this  collection,  commenced  during  his  lifetime,  was  not  completed  until  after 
his  death,  so  that  it  is  a  sort  of  monument  raised  by  the  poet  and  the  artist  to 
his  niemorj^ 


Fig.  293. — Token  of  Michel  Fezandat,  Printer  at  Paris  (1552),  with  a  Proverhial  Device 
attributed  to  Rabelais. 


LANGUAGES. 


The  Origin  of  Languages. — Decadence  of  the  Latin  Language. — The  Celtic  and  Teutonic 
Languages.— The  Rustic  Language.— Common  iSTeo-Latin  Dialects. — First  Evidences  of 
the  French  Language. — The  Oath  of  Louis  the  German  in  842. — Laws  of  William  the 
Conqueror. — The  Oc  and  Oil  Languages. — Poem  of  Boethius. — The  "Chanson  de  Roland." — 
Fabliaux. — The  "Romance  of  the  Rose." — Villehardouin. — The  Sire  de  Joinville. — Froissart 
— Influence  of  Flemish  Writers. — Antoine  de  la  Sale. — The  "Cent  Nouvelles  nouvelles"  and 
Villon. — Hellenism  and  Italianism. — Clement  Marot  and  Rabelais. — Ronsard,  Montaigne 
and  Malheibe. 


0  soon  as  a  languao-e  has  reached  the  stao-e 
of  makiiiff  the  task  of  iiiiderstanding 
it  a  difficult  one,  the  dissolution  of  the 

social  elements  is  not  far  oif Babel 

is  symbolic  of  the  destiny  of  languages." 
We  take  this  remark  from  the  work  of 
M.  Francis  Wey  on  the  "Variations  of  the 
French  Language,"  in  which  he  points  out 
that  idioms,  like  everj'thing  else  mortal, 
have  their  periods  of  rise  and  fall,  and  that 

r,^.,^^^^,^  a  time  arrives  when  they  are  rendered 
diffuse  b}'  neologism,  or  decomposed  b}'  the  influence  of  equivocation. 
The  history  of  the  confusion  of  tongues,  as  described  by  Moses  in  the 
Book  of  Genesis,  might  be  looked  upon  as  typical  of  what  happened  in  Europe 
when  the  Roman  j^eople  endeavoured  to  establish  their  dominion  o\er  all  tlie 
lands  which  they  had  conquered  by  means  of  their  language,  which  was  to 
be  the  social  cement  of  the  whole  nationalit}\     "  And  the  whole  earth  was  of 

one  language  and  of  one  speech And  the  Lord  came  down  to  see  the 

city  and  the  tower,  which  the  children  of  men  buildcd.  And  the  Lord  said. 
Behold,  the  people  is  one,  and  they  have  all  one  language ;  and  this  they 
begin  to  do :  and  now  nothing  will  be  restrained  from  them,  which  they 
have   imagined  to  do.     Go  to,  let  us  go    down,  and    there    confound  their 


r 


346  LANGUAGES. 


language,  tliat  they  maj'  not  understand  one  another's  speech.  So  the  Lord 
scattered  them  abroad  from  thence  upon  the  face  of  all  the  earth  :  and  they 
left  off  to  build  the  city.  Therefore  is  the  name  of  it  called  Babel ;  because 
the  Lord  did  there  confound  the  language  of  all  the  earth  "  (Fig.  294). 

In  the  beginning  of  the  fifth  century  the  empire  of  the  Cjesars  had 
become,  like  Babel,  a  vast  ruin  ;  the  Latin  tongue,  which  since  the  Roman 
conquest  and  occupation  had  been  the  legal,  religious,  civil,  and  administrative 
language  of  nearly  all  Europe,  was  invaded  by  the  barbarian  tongues,  as  the 
soil  was  by  the  savage  hordes  which,  from  the  heart  of  Asia,  the  extremities 
of  Germany,  and  the  unknown  regions  of  the  North,  poured  in  upon  the 
Roman  world.  From  this  epoch  dates  the  origin  of  the  languages  of  modem 
Europe  (Fig.  295),  which  were  formed  out  of  a  mixture  of  the  idiom  of  the 
invader  with  the  Latin  tongue,  which  latter  had  become  too  deeply  rooted  in  the 
usages  of  ordinary  life  to  be  extirpated  altogether.  It  is  true  that  the  classic 
language  of  Livy,  Cicero,  and  Sallust  was  only  spoken  and  understood  by  the 
upper  classes  of  society,  but  the  other  classes  used  a  rustic  language  which 
varied  with  the  district  and  population,  but  which  was  derived  from  the  true 
Latin  tongue.  This  rustic  language  (lingua  Romana)  consisted  of  an  infinity 
of  dialects  proceeding  from  one  and  another,  and  differing,  some  more,  some 
less,  from  the  mother  tongue. 

The  Celtic  language  also  comprised  a  certain  number  of  dialects,  which 
existed  amongst  the  Gauls  at  the  epoch  of  the  expeditions  of  Csesar,  and  which 
were,  as  he  says  in  his  "  Commentaries,"  merely  variations  of  the  same 
language.  Strabo  also  says  that  the  Gauls  everywhere  used  a  single  native 
language,  merely  modified  by  differences  of  dialect.  Moreover,  the  Celtic 
language  simply  underwent  certain  modifications,  under  the  influence  of  the 
Latin  language,  when  the  latter  became  exclusively  the  political  or  official 
language  of  the  Roman  colony.  The  Emperors  established  in  the  principal 
cities  of  Gaul,  notably  at  Lyons,  Autun,  and  Besancon,  schools  in  which  the 
Latin  language  was  taught,  and  the  most  earnest  efforts  were  made  to  pro- 
pagate it  not  only  in  the  aristocratic  classes,  but  amongst  the  people,  who 
were  more  stubborn  in  the  retention  of  their  national  idiom.  This  policy  of 
the  Romans  was  very  successful.  Not  only  did  the  Gallo-Romans  lush  into 
servitude,  as  Tacitus  expresses  it,  but  they  took  willingly  to  the  language  of 
their  conquerors,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  unavoidable  errors  of  pro- 
nunciation   and    the   introduction    of   a    few    Celtic    words    into   the   Latin 


LANGUAGES. 


347 


vocabulary.  In  short,  when  the  Bar- 
barians established  themselves  in 
Gaul,  all  the  inhabitants,  except  a  few 
countrj'-people,  had  for  centuries  used 
a  bastard  /ingiia  liouiaiut.  These  Bar- 
barians imfiorted  new  idiomatic  ele- 
ments into  this  hybrid  language,  as 
modified  by  the  Gauls,  but  they  could 
not  destroy  it,  and  Latin  remained  the 
foundation  or  root  of  French. 

Moreover,  the  Gauls  had  no  written 
history  or  literature,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  a  few  war  songs  and  religious 
hymns,  which  stood  then  in  room  of 
national  archives,  and  which  were  pre- 
served in  the  memory  of  the  Druids 
and  the  heads  of  families.  The  Celtic 
language,  not  having  received  the 
consecration  of  literary  works  which 
would  have  insured  its  perpetuation, 
tended  inevitably  to  dissolution  and 
disuse.      This  law  of  dissolution  had 


I'i'.'.  294.— C'onstructifin  of  the  Tower  of 
Buhel,  in  the  Valley  of  Scnaar,  hy 
the  Descendants  of  Noah. — Miniature 
from  a  Manuscript  of  the  Fiiteenlh 
Centun,'. — Kational  I.iljrary,  Palis. 


probably    taken    effect   by    the    time   that  the    Franks,   after    their  repeated 


3+8 


LANGUAGES. 


invasions  of  Gaul,  had  at  length,  established  themselves  in  the  territory  "which 
they  had  conquered.  The  men  of  letters,  the  ecclesiastics,  and  the  patricians 
still  spoke  Latin,  but  of  a  very  mongrel  and  sometimes  unintelligible  kind. 
Only  those  who  had  studied  in  the  academies  of  Lyons,  Yienne,  Narbonae, 
and  Aquitaine  were  familiar  with  the  principles  of  the  language,  and  were 
able  to  write  it  without  making  any  gross  faults  of  grammar  (Fig.  296j. 


Pig.  295. — The  Institution  of  Languages.— Fac-siniile  of  a.  Wood  Engraving  of  the  "Margarita 
Philosophica  Nova,"  Argeiitoratum,  J.  Gruninger,  1012,  in  quarto.— In  the  ArseniJ  Library. 
Paris. 


But  the  general  language  used  was  the  lingua  Eomana,  and  in  this  vulgar 
tongue  were  written  works  of  prose — probably  works  of  poetry  as  well — which 
have  not  survived  to  our  day. 

The  Franks  had  such  a  great  respect  for  the  Eoman  institutions  that,  far 


LANGUAGES.  34.9 


from  attempting  to  destroy  them,  they  generally  left  undisturhed  the  political 
and  administrative  organization  of  the  Ganls.  This  is  ^vhy  the  Latin  tongue 
continued  to  be  under  Prankish  dominion  the  general  language  of  the  laeojile 


Jf  .€rpUiraIitrr  tiorramur  Bomiiinot 

p^rrmrtft:pjffmtom!prrfritOBnna5 
mmtx  ocfrrrriourl  tsorrrcrr  lortrr^ 
turSt]3luraliftrtiaiiaiiLti0iTrnmir 


rtu  ttplitfaiirrfjrrto  tmiiam  tomic^  cP- 


fiiifif  t€tpUu  alitei  u  tinam  Darft  eflf^ 
nuts  0f  !^ii(rntii!$  rlTrti^iid  finllrtia 


ari^octan^udi^ocrarciorfaf.  €tprr 
y  tmam  norramur  It  S3  rramiui  corrauf 
Comunmuo  inooa  mnpo^f  parfcnt' 

Fig.  296. — Specimen  of  a  page  of  the  "  Ciraniiiiaire  Latine,"  by  jElius  Donatus,  a  grammarian  of 
the  Fourth  Century. — Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving  for  the  Xylographical  Edition, 
published  at  Mayence,  by  Gutenberg. — This  Wood  Engraving  was  preserved  in  the  Library 
of  the  Due  do  la  Valliere. 

(Fig.  296),  and  it  was  a  more  refined  and  learned  language  as  spoken  by  the 
public  officials,  the  clergy,  and  the  magistracy.  The  Franks  used  the  Teutonic 
language  amongst  themselves  until  they  were  converted  to  Christianity  after 
the  example  of  their  king  (Clovis).     Thenceforward  their  regular  intercourse 


LANGUAGES. 


witli  the  ecclesiastics  who  instructed  them  in  their  new  religion  led  to  their 
learning  the  Latin  language,  and  speaking  it  more  or  less  correctly.  Being 
endowed  with  a  lively  intelligence  and  ready  wit,  they  were  not  long  in 
acquiring  a  knowledge  of  a  new  language  which  recommended  itself  to  them 
as  having  about  it  the  halo  of  Roman  greatness. 

In  fine,  the  French  language  is  composed  of  three  perfectl}'  distinct 
elements — Celtic,  Germanic,  and  Latin ;  the  last,  however,  being  by  far  the 
most  predominant.  There  are  not  more  than  a  thousand  words  of  Germanic 
origin  in  the  French  language,  and  far  fewer  of  Celtic  origin.  Nearly  all 
the  rest  are  Latin,  and  it  has  been  said  with  perfect  truth  (hat  "  French  is 
merely  a  patois  of  Latin." 

From  the  time  of  Clovis  the  progress  made  by  Latin  was  very  rapid.  The 
laws  of  the  Franks,  as  of  the  other  barbarian  peojile  who  invaded  the  Roman 
empire,  were  written  in  Latin ;  not,  it  is  true,  in  scholarly  Latin,  but  in  what 
was  called  the  sermo  quoticUanus,  or  every-day  language,  so  termed  because 
everybody  understood  and  spoke  it.  It  is  true  that  the  Teutonic  language 
continued  to  be  spoken  by  the  Frankish  tribes  which  occupied  the  banks  of  the 
Rhine  and  the  pi'ovinces  of  Germania ;  but  the  Franks  under  Clovis  and  the 
other  kings  or  chiefs  who  had  established  themselves  at  Orleans,  Paris,  and 
Soissons,  soon  adopted  the  vulgar  Latin  as  their  language.  • 

The  leudes,  or  great  vassals,  either  out  of  indolence  or  pride,  adhered  for  a 
longer  period  to  their  national  language,  and  it  was  probably  in  use  amongst 
the  upper  classes  as  late  as  Charlemagne's  reign.  The  kings  of  the  first  race, 
in  order  to  gain  the  sympathies  of  the  Gallo-Roman  population,  nevertheless 
assumed  to  feel  an  interest  in  the  progress  of  the  Latin  vulgar  tongue.  Thus 
two  centuries  earlier,  the  Gauls,  who  still  spoke  Celtic,  endeavoured,  according 
to  the  expression  of  Sidonius  Apollinaris,  "to  rid  themselves  of  the  rust  of  this 
ancient  language,  in  order  to  make  themselves  fainiliar  with  the  graces  of  the 
beautiful  Latin  language."  Chil^^eric  I.,  King  of  Soissons,  in  the  middle  of  the 
sixth  century,  plamed  himself  upon  imitating  in  his  speeches  the  rhetoric  of 
the  most  learned  Romans.  He  endeavoured  to  develop  the  study  of  the  Latin 
tongue  in  his  dominions,  and  as  his  svibjects  could  not  manage  to  reproduce 
the  sounds  of  the  Teutonic  idiom  with  the  letters  of  the  Roman  alphabet,  he 
suggested  the  use  of  certain  Greek  and  Hebrew  letters  which  lent  themselves 
better  to  the  intonations  of  the  Frankish  tongue.  Contemporary  with  hini, 
Caribert,  King  of  Paris,  set  up  the  pretension  of  being  learned  in  jurispru- 


LANGUAGES.  35 1 


dence,  and  of  expresuing  himself  in  the  hxnguage  of  Cicero  with  the  eloquence 
of  a  true  Roman.  Bishop  Fortunatus  addressed  him  some  Latin  verses  com- 
plimenting hun  on  speaking  Latin  as  if  he  had  been  a  Roman  born,  instead 
of  being  of  Sicambric  origin.  The  poet  added,  "  What  must  be  your 
eloquence  when  you  speak  your  mother  tongue,  you  who  are  more  eloquent 
than  we  ourselves  in  ours  !  " 

But,  for  all  these  fulsome  eulogies,  there  was  scarcely,  perhaps,  a  single 
person  cajDable  of  writing  and  speaking  classical  Latin  correctly  in  the  Gallo- 
Roman  provinces  of  which  the  Franks  were  masters,  though  the  Teutonic 
language  had  been  almost  universally  succeeded  by  the  rustic  or  vulgar 
tongue. 

Gregory  of  Tours,  whose  "  History  of  the  Franks  "  throws  so  much  light 
upon  this  remote  epoch,  confesses  in  one  of  his  works  ("De  Gloria  Confes- 
sorum  ")  that  he  was  almost  completely  ignorant  of  the  rules  of  Latin,  and 
he  admits  to  having  frequently  confused  genders  and  cases,  used  the  feminine 
for  the  masculine  or  neuter,  and  the  ablative  for  the  accusative,  and  neglected 
the  rules  as  to  prepositions.  The  text  of  his  valuable  chronicle,  written 
between  the  years  573  and  593,  is,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  full  of  inaccuracies, 
though  the  early  copyists  corrected  some  of  the  most  glaring  blunders  out  of 
respect  for  the  memory  of  the  illustrious  Bishop  of  Tours. 

From  the  time  of  Chilperic  to  that  of  Charlemagne  the  true  Latin 
language  gradually  degenerated  amongst  the  Franks,  notwithstanding  the 
praiseworthy  efforts  of  the  monks  to  preserve  it,  as  if  it  were  a  sacred  ark, 
in  their  monasteries.  Upon  the  other  hand,  the  vulgar  tongue,  consisting  of 
mongrel  Latin  and  Latinised  Teutonic,  continued  to  spread  amongst  the 
population.  Charlemagne,  who  spoke  this  language  before  he  learned 
granunatical  Latin,  was  much  vexed  at  this  decadence.  What  pained  him 
the  most  was  to  find  that  bishops  and  other  dignitaries  of  the  Church  were 
incapable  of  reading  the  Bible  in  the  Vulgate.  He  accordingly  instituted  the 
Palatine  School,  under  the  direction  of  iVlcuin,  with  the  view  of  purifying 
ecclesiastical  Latin.  His  peers  and  his  barons,  his  leudes  and  his  military 
officers,  retained  their  Teutonic  language,  but  his  personal  influence  was  none 
the  less  favourable  to  the  preservation  of  the  Latin  tongue,  which  became  the 
language  of  the  Church,  and  which  profited  by  the  written  works  of  sacred 
literature. 

In  addition  to  the  literary  Latin  which  was  not  used  in  conversation,  but 


352  LANGUAGES. 


in  books  and  public  documents,  there  were  only  t-wo  general  languages 
tbroughout  tbe  wbole  of  Charlemagne's  vast  empire — Romance  and  Teutonic. 
The  most  ancient  monument  which  we  possess  in  the  middle  of  the  ninth 
century  is  the  double  oath  which  Charles  the  Bald,  King  of  France,  and 
Louis  the  German,  leagued  against  their  brother,  the  Emperor  Lothair,  took 
in  jDresence  of  their  armies  upon  the  14th  of  February,  842.  It  will  be 
sufficient  for  present  purposes  to  cite  the  oath  taken  by  Louis  the  German  in 
Romance,  in  order  to  be  heard  and  understood  by  the  army  of  Charles, 
which  was  composed  of  Franks  and  Gallo-Romans  from  Neustria,  Aquitaine, 
and  other  Southern  regions : — "  Pro  Deo  amur  et  pro  Christian  poblo,  et 
nostro  commun  salvament,  d'ist  di  en  avant,  in  quant  Deus  savir  et  podir  me 
dunat,  si  salvarai  eo  cist  meon  fradre  Carle,  et  in  adjudha,  et  in  cadhuna 
nosa,  si  cum  om  per  dreit  son  fradre  salvar  dist,  in  o  quid  il  mi  altresi  fazet. 
Et  ab  Ludher  nul  plaid  numquam  prindrai,  qui,  meon  vol,  cist  meon  fradre 
Karle  in  damno  sit." 

This  was  the  vulgar  tongue  as  spoken  in  the  greater  part  of  France  at 
this  period,  and  it  is  worthy  of  remark  that  nearly  all  the  words  in  the  above 
document  are  taken,  disfigured  in  pronunciation  or  spelling,  from  the  Latin. 
Thus  the  common  language  was  rustic  Latin  ;  the  Romance  formed  from  a 
fusion  of  Celtic,  German,  and  Latin.  This  was  the  language  of  France,  and 
the  Germans  called  France  "Latin"  {Francia  Latina),  because  this  language, 
which  was  only  a  hybrid  product  of  the  Latin  tongue,  was  spoken  there. 
According  to  Luitprand,  an  historian  of  the  tenth  century,  Gaul  was  always 
named  Francia  Eomaua,  and  a,  later  writer  sa5^s  that  this  denomination  was 
not  given  to  France  on  account  of  Rome,  but  because  of  the  Romance 
language  spoken  there  ("sic  dicta,  non  a  Roma,  sed  a  lingua  Romana"). 
And  this  is  how  the  Franks  of  Gaul  came  to  be  called  Francs  Latin  (Latin 
Franks). 

Still  the  Gallic  nobles,  as  the  great  lords  of  the  soil  called  themselves, 
protested  against  this  general  invasion  of  the  Latin  vulgar  tongue.  The 
Emperor  Lothair,  son  of  Louis  the  Mild,  had  steadfastly  refused  to  learn 
Latin,  even  the  vulgar  tongue,  and  his  father  had  endeavoured  to  preserve 
the  use  of  the  Teutonic  language  in  his  states  by  means  of  a  decree  to  the 
effect  that  the  Bible  should  be  translated  into  this  language,  which  had  few 
representatives  out  of  Germany  itself.  At  the  Council  of  Tours  (813)  the 
bishops  furthered  the  intentions  of   Charlemagne's  successor  by  expressing 


LANGUAGES. 


353 


their  desire  tliat  tlie  homilies  of   the    Church    shoukl  be  translated  simul- 
taneously both  into  Teutonic  and  Romance  (Fig.  297). 

The  Teutonic  language  none  the  less  disappeared  at  the  end  of  the  tenth 
century,  for  Didie  Hugh  Caj^et,  before  he  became  the  first  king  of  the  third 
race,  during  an  interview  with  the  Emperor  Otho  II.,  who  spoke  in  jJure 
Latin  so  as  to  make  himself  understood  by  the  bishops,  could  only  reply  to 
him  in  Romance  ;  and  the  historian  Richer,  who  was  present  at  the  interview, 
relates  that  Arnulf,  Bishop  of  Orleans,  was  obliged  to  translate  what  Otho 


Fig.  297. — King  Robert,  Son  of  Hugh  Capet,  comiiosing  Sequences  and  Keaponsea  in  Latin. — 
Miniature  from  the  "  Chroniques  de  Fiance." — Manuscript  of  the  Fourteenth  Century,  No.  3. 
— In  the  Burgundy  Library,  Brussels. 


said  into  the  vulgar  tongue  in  order  that  Duke  Hugh  might  understand  it. 
A  little  later,  however,  when  Duke  Hugh  was  ujjon  the  throne,  the  Bishop  of 
Verdun  was  apjiointed  to  speak  at  the  Synod  of  Mouzon  because  he  knew 
Teutonic.  The  Romance  or  vulgar  tongue  had  none  the  less  continued  to 
make  its  way  tliioughout  the  western  provinces  which  formed  the  kingdom 
of  Franco,   mtkI    it  was   tlic   language   botli    of   tlic   imhlrs   ;nid   of   tlu^   ])eo])k-. 

z  z 


354  LAXGUAGES. 


"William  tlie  Conqueror,  Duke  of  Normandy,  introduced  it  into  England,  just 
as  Robert  G-uiscard,  his  contemporary,  did  into  Sicily  and  Ifaples.  "Williaiu 
decreed  that  the  laws  of  England  should  be  written  in  French — that  is  to  say, 
in  Xorman,  which  was  merely  a  dialect  of  the  Romance  language — and  that 
French  should  be  taught  in  the  schools  before  Latin.  At  jSTaples,  according 
to  an  historian  of  the  time,  whoever  was  ignorant  of  French  was  held  in  very 
poor  esteem  at  this  essentially  French  court.  One  of  the  articles  (Xo.  38)  in 
the  Laws  of  William  the  Conqueror  shows  what  progress  had  been  made  by 
the  Romance  language  at  the  end  of  the  eleventh  century  to  arrive  at  being 
transformed  into  the  Langiie  cV  Oil :  "  Si  home  enpuisuned  altre,  seit  occis,  u 
permanablement  essille.  Jo  jettai  vos  choses  por  cause  de  mort,  et  de  co  ne 
me  poez  emplaider :  car  leist  a  faire  damage  a  altres  par  poiir  de  mort,  quant 
par  el  ne  pot  eschaper." 

The  Romance,  otherwise  the  Xeo-Latin,  languages  are  French,  Provencal, 
Italian,  Spanish,  Portuguese,  and  Roumanic.  They  were  formed  at  the  same 
time,  but  under  different  influences  with  regard  to  pronunciation,  and  they 
are,  in  truth,  all  of  them  Latin  issuing  from  different  throats  and  looked  at 
in  different  lights.  It  was  poetry  which,  when  emerging  from  the  cradle  of 
chivalry,  inaugurated  the  creation  of  modern  languages,  for  grammarians  and 
rhetoricians  do  not  make  languages ;  all  they  can  do  is  to  superintend  the 
best  use  of  its  wealth  when  a  lano-uase  has  been  enriched  by  the  efforts  of  its 
poets  and  writers  who  employ  it.  Moreover,  the  two  currents  which  carried 
the  national  idiom,  without  resistance  and  without  admixture,  iuto  its  two 
principal  beds,  the  Oc  language  and  the  Oil  language,  had  long  been  manifest. 
The  one  was  the  language  of  the  poets,  the  other  that  of  the  troubadours  and 
the  trouveres,  and  the  two  languages,  or  rather  the  two  dialects,  both  acquired 
simultaneously  their  relative  perfection.  The  first  literary  records  of  the 
Provencal  language  are  the  poem  of  Boethius,  "  The  Mystery  of  the  Wise 
and  of  the  Foolish  Yirgius,"  and  several  other  poems  anterior  to  WiUiam  IX., 
Duke  of  Aquitaine  (1071 — 1127),  who  has  often  been  cited  as  the  earliest  of 
the  troubadours.  The  first  memorials  of  the  French  language,  after  the  oath 
of  842  quoted  above,  are  the  Cantilena  of  St.  Eulalie,  the  two  poems  in  the 
libraiy  of  Clei-mont  dedicated  to  St.  Leger  and  to  the  Passion,  and  the  "  Life 
of  St.  Alexis,"  which  was  composed  about  1050.  Xext  come  the  warlike 
epodes,  called  chansons  de  geste  or  romans  de  chevalerie,  and  it  was  in  this  way 
that  the  Homeric  epode  was  one  of  the  first  inspirations  of  the  Greek  language. 


LANGUAGES.  355 


In  these  vigorous  pictures  of  heroic  life  the  qualities  of  invention,  imagination, 
and  national  genius  are  most  conspicuous,  and  there  are  signs  of  brilliant  and 
sparkling  style  before  the  regular  formation  of  the  language. 

It  is  in  the  famous  "  Chanson  de  Roland "  that  is  to  be  found  the 
oldest  type  of  the  language,  which,  as  M.  Francis  Wey  has  remarked,  was 
still  in  its  infancy.  But  this  beautiful  poem,  attributed  without  sufEcient 
proof  to  a  trouvere  named  Turold,  none  the  less  contains  many  passages 
worthy  to  be  compared  with  the  Iliad.  The  following  is  the  description 
which  he  gives  of  the  death  of  Oliver,  one  of  Charlemagne's  twelve  peers,  in 
the  Pass  of  Roncevaux,  where  Roland  and  his  companions  sustained  the  attack 
of  the  Saracen  army  : — 

"  Oliviers  sent  que  la  mort  mult  I'anguisset : 
Ambdui  li  oil  en  la  teste  li  turnent, 
L'oie  pert  e  la  veiie  tute  ; 
Descent  a  pied,  a  la  tero  se  culchet, 
Forment  en  halt  si  recleimet  sa  culpe, 
Cuntre  le  ciel  ambesdous  ses  mains  juintes, 
Si  preiet  Diou  que  pareis  li  dunget, 
E  beneiet  Carlun  e  France  dulce, 
Sun  cumpaguun  EoUant  desur  tuz  humea. 
Fait  li  le  coer,  li  helmes  li  embrunchet ; 
Trestut  le  cors  a  la  tere  li  justet. 
Morz  est  li  quens  que  plus  ne  se  demuret. 
Rollanz  li  ber  le  pluret,  si  I'duluset. 
Jamais  en  tere  n'orrez  plus  dolent  hume."  *  .  .  . 

Henceforward  the  French  language  is  an  accomplished  fact.  It  is  tho 
Oil  language.  It  stiU  clings  close  to  Latin,  from  which  it  borrows  some  of  its 
most  ingenious  and  narrowly  defined  rules  ;  amongst  others,  the  declension  of 
words  and  adjectives,  represented  in  French  by  the  adjunction  or  su^ipression 
of  the  final  s.  This  rule  was  not,  however,  generally  adopted  by  French 
writers,  but  it  is  easy  to  see  that  it  was  pointed  out  and  followed  by  some  of 


*  The  literal  translation  of  these  lines  is,  "  Oliver  feels  the  agony  of  death  creep  over  him.  His 
eyes  turn  in  his  head.  He  loses  hearing  and  sight.  Dismounts  and  throws  himself  upon  the 
ground.  Recites  his  mea  culpa  aloud.  Joins  his  two  hands  and  raises  them  heavenward.  Prays 
God  to  let  him  enter  Paradise.  Blesses  Charlemagne  and  gentle  France,  and,  above  all,  his 
companion  Roland.  His  heart  fails  him,  hie  head  droops.  He  falls  at  full  length  upon  the  ground. 
'Tis  done,  the  Count  is  dead ;  and  Baron  Roland  bewails  him  and  weeps  for  him.  Never  on 
earth  will  you  see  a  man  more  afflicted." 


356 


LANGUAGES. 


tkem.  It  must,  however,  be  said  that  as  yet  there  was  no  such  a  thing  as 
grammar ;  every  one  spoke  and  wrote  at  his  fancy,  according  to  his  instinet 
or  tendencies,  and  the  language  was  clear  or  obscure,  heavy  or  light,  accord-  ■ 
ing  to  the  person  that  employed  it.  Even  the  spelling  of  words  varied  almost 
ad  infinitum,  and  it  did  not  occu.r  to  anybody  to  establish  a  regular  system  of 
orthography. 

The  great  romances  of  chivalry  imported  to  the  Oil  language  a  sort  of 
nobility,  grandeur,  and  force  very  suitable  to  the  epic  style.  But  other 
trouveres,  of  humble  origin  no  dovibt,  and,  as  such,  more  satiric  and  facetious 
than  the  poets  who  wrote  the  chansons  de  gcste,  invented  the  Fahliau,  the  Conte, 


Fig.  298. — Conflagration  of  the  Bel-Accueil  Prison.  Fig.  299. — Narcissus  at  the  Fountain. 

Miniatures  from  the  "  Romance  of  the  Rose."- — Manuscript  of  the  Fourteenth  Century. 
In  the  Library  of  M.  Amhroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


and  the  Bit,  which  abounded  in  comedy  and  sarcasm.  The  vices,  the  defects, 
the  passions,  and  the  foibles  of  society,  from  the  villein  to  the  king,  were  hit 
off  in  popular  poetry,  much  to  the  amusement  of  the  persons  portrayed.  The 
language  must  have  become  richer  and  more  svipjJe  for  it  to  have  been  made 
the  medium  of  such  satire  as  this,  which  was  couched  in  the  familiar  and 
even  trite  expressions  in  use  amongst  the  common  people  both  of  town  and 
country.  As  time  went  on  it  became  more  vivid,  more  pointed,  more  incisive, 
and  more  sprightly.  Its  best  types  are  the  various  fabliaux,  and  also  the 
"  Romance  of  the  Rose  "  (Figs.  298  and  299),  begun  by  William  de  Lorris 


LANGUAGES. 


357 


about  1220,  and  completed  fifty  years  later  by  Jean  de  Meung,  surnamed 
Clopinel. 

The  "  Romance  of  the  Rose "  was  beyond  all  doubt  a  reminiscence  of 
Provencal  poetry,  which  for  two  centu.ries  had  charmed  the  populations  of  the 
South  by  the  soft  and  gracious  imagery  with  which  it  expressed  the  senti- 
ments of  the  heart.  The  Romance  language  of  the  South,  the  Oc  language 
pm'ified,  perfected,  and  developed,  might  have  become,  from  the  twelfth 
century,  the  rival  of  the  Latin,  Italian,  and  Sj)anish  languages ;  but  the 
troubadours,  who  were  dreamy  and  pensive  poets,  were  too  addicted  to 
singing  of  love,  of  women,  of  flowers,  and  the  enervating  pleasures  of  earthly 
Kfe.  Their  chamom,  their  fcnsons,  their  lylands,  &c.,  which  were  recited  to  the 
accompaniment  of  some  stringed  instrument,  were  imitated  by  the  Northern 
trouveres,  but  with  less  monotony  and  more  force.  William  de  Lorris  and 
his  successor  added  to  the  complimentary  allegories  and  subtleties  of  the 
"Romance  of  the  Rose"  the  satirical  and  sarcastic  element,  which  was,  perhaps, 
the  outcome  of  the  Gallic  spirit.  In  short,  the  French  language  may  be  said, 
in  this  work  of  the  thirteenth  century,  to  have  already  acquired  all  its  original 
qualities.  The  following  description  of  spring  may  bo  quoted  as  a  proof 
thereof : — 

"  En  mai  estoie,  ce  songoie. 
El  terns  amoreus  plain  de  joie, 
El  terns  oil  tote  rions  s'esgaie, 
Que  Ten  ue  voit  boisson  ne  haie 
Qui  en  mai  parer  ne  se  voille 
Et  covrir  de  novele  foille. 
Li  boia  recovrent  lor  verdure, 
Qui  sunt  sec  tant  com  j'ver  dure ; 
La  terre  meismes  s'orgoillo 
Par  la  rosee  qui  la  moille 
Et  oblie  la  povertc 
Oil  elle  a  tot  I'yver  este. 
Lors  devient  la  terre  si  gobc 
Qu'el  volt  avoir  novele  robe,"  &c. 

William  de  Lorris  belonged  rather  to  the  troubadour  school,  while  Jean  do 
Meung  had  more  in  common  with  the  trouveres  of  the  Artois,  Picardy,  and 
Champagne  provinces,  though  the  style  of  both,  correct  and  full  of  elegance, 
was  thoroughly  representative  of  the  Oil  language,  which  at  that  time  was 
almost  in  as  much  favour  as  Latin,  though  the  latter  still  survived  as  a  spoken 


35  8  LANGUAGES. 


language  in  tlie  Universities.  The  Oil  language  had.  become  so  famous 
throughout  Europe  that  Brunette  Latini,  who  was  the  tutor  of  Dante, 
wrote  in  French  the  encyclopsedia  published  by  him  under  the  title  of  "  The 
Treasure."  Dante  Alighieri,  to  whom.  Brunetto  Latini  had  taught  the  Oil 
language,  came  to  Paris  in  order  to  complete  his  linguistic  and  scholastic 
studies  (Fig.  300). 

Poetry  had  served  to  stimu.late  the  progress  of  French,  as  it  had  done  of 
all  other  languages,  but,  from  the  beginning  of  the  thirteenth  century,  good 

.  qtxclfauw  c^nlV dx  tntto  /w, 

noncttiH^m  hftcnkr  h^fhtiomd 
^  ot  finno]f^  ixcnidli)  cfuxtii  Uhui 

^3iffe  mce  malit^o  \x\}v 

cSfuma  bcxxUv  tccoU tm  xnhik 
^  onCfi^xxcA  axCa^y  UnhAtc  aicvivo 

'\)xxoi\e  ai^t  ccU  (Vu«J  mxt\)^[c 

Mauexx^cd  bctflipbe  jHiip. 

m^gio  vxo  anoXtcyox  dje  iaihot^accX 
Ml  oibhe  ateiti  Id  Jtem  miMe. 

Fio-.  300. — Fragment  of  Dante's  "  Divina  Commedia." — Manuscript  of  the  Fourteenth  Century. 
In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


prose  made  its  appearance  in  France,  with  Geoffroi  de  Villehardouin's  book 
on  the  Conquest  of  Constantinople.  This  writer,  a  man  of  little  education, 
who  wrote  with  great  facility  and  precision,  and  who  used  the  true  historic 
language,  was  a  noble  and  a  warrior,  and  he  was  the  first  to  bring  out  the 
real  qualities  of  the  French  language  in  his  description  of  what  took  place 
during  the  Crusade  of  1202,  at  which  he  was  present.  This  crusader,  a  native 
of  Champagne,  attained  perfection  almost  at  a  bound ;  and  the  Sire  de  Joinvule, 


LANGUAGES. 


359 


who  half  a  century  later  narrated  the  Crusades  of  St.  Louis,  did  not,  perhaps, 
equal  him,  though  he  could  command  the  use  of  a  vocabulary  much  richer 
and  more  supple.  The  reign  of  Louis  saw  the  formation  of  a  polite  society, 
in  which  the  language,  while  becoming  more  variegated,  more  incisive,  and 
more  abundant,  preserved  its  early  simpKcity  and  grace.  The  Sire  de  Join- 
ville's  sly  good-humour  makes  him  the  p)leasantest  and  most  attractive  tale- 
teller of  the  Middle  Ages. 

The  French  language,  which  was  spoken  all  over  Europe,  and  even  in  the 
East,  during   the   thirteenth   century,   but  which  was   more   especially   the 


i'r/'i'i '/  'rn'/'yi'i'i'/'i  ,'•''/■(  >>//'/  'r-, 


^W/^^^','M,,f^r^r^^ 


Fig.  301. — The  Three  Virtues  (Reason,  Uprightno.'^s,  and  Justice)  urge  Christina  de  Pisan  to  write 
a  Book  of  Ethics  for  the  Instruction  of  Ladies. — Miniature  from  the  "  Livre  des  Vertus," 
unpublished  Manuscript,  dating  from  140.5.— In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot, 
Paris. 


privileged  language  of  the  courts,  could  not  avoid  declining  in  the  following 
century,  even  though  that  century  possessed  such  a  distinguished  wi'iter  as 
Jean  Froissart.  This  chronicler,  in  the  opinion  of  M.  Francis  Wey,  who  is, 
perhaps,  a  little  severe  upon  him,  was  endowed  with  the  instinct  of  his  art, 
was  clever  without  elevation  of  thought  and  without  di.scernnient,  .seeking  for 
effect  rather  than  to  excite  emotion,  narrating  trifles  with  tedious  prolixity, 


36o  LANGUAGES. 


and  not  imposing  any  clieck  upon  liis  style,  wMcli  is  often  lieavy  and  diffuse. 
The  tendency  of  the  language  was  to  become  turgid  and  monotonous. 

The  usurpation  of  the  Flemish  writers  into  all  branches  of  French  litera- 
ture was  not  favourable  to  the  latter,  which,  becoming  affected  and  involved, 
finally  lapsed  into  pedantic  and  fallacious  verbosity.  Christina  de  Pisan 
(Fig.  301),  the  historiographer  of  Charles  V.,  set  the  example  of  this  fictitious 
pathos,  but  she  was  very  soon  outdone  by  the  historians  of  the  court  of 
Burgundy,  George  Chastelain,  Olivier  de  la  Marche,  and  Molinet.  Jean 
d'Auton,  the  chronicler  of  Louis  XII.,  appears  to  have  been  more  than  any 
other  writer  responsible  for  the  involved  style  which  formed  the  Gordian 
knot  of  the  French  language. 

Antoiae  de  la  Sale,  a  pleasant  chronicler  of  the  court  of  Burgundy,  did 
not  in  any  way  contribute  to  tighten  this  knot,  though  he  did  not  cut  it;  and 
his  romance,  "  Petit  Jehan  de  Saintre,"  must  have  been  a  welcome  change  to 
the  reader  after  he  had  perused  so  many  comj)ilations  written  in  a  style  at 
once  pretentious  and  involved.  Antoine  de  la  Sale  wrote  French,  and  this 
remark  applies  with  even  greater  truth  to  the  authors  of  the  "  Cent  NouveUes 
nouvelles,"  who  seemed  to  descend  in  a  direct  line  from  the  ancient  trouveres 
who  had  set  to  rhyme  so  many  joyous  fabliaux.  The  French  language,  spoilt 
by  too  much  erudition,  once  more  recovered  its  original  force,  when  put  in 
the  mouth  of  the  people  at  large  by  a  poet  Avho  drew  from  his  own  inspira- 
tion, without  the  aid  of  Latin  words  or  of  declamation,  eloquence  of  a  simple 
and  natural  kind.  This  was  Francois  Villon,  who  writes  the  language  of  the 
"  Romance  of  the  Rose,"  only  with  greater  force  and  boldness.  While  he 
was  restoi'ing  to  its  place  of  honour  the  language  of  Paris,  a  statesman  and  a 
courtier,  Philippe  de  Comines,  was  preparing  Memoirs  which  are  a  perfect 
model  of  the  grave,  sustained,  and  philosoj^hical  language  of  history.  As 
M.  Francis  Wey  remarks,  "  The  Seigneur  of  Argenton  writes  in  a  style 
which  is  flexible,  precise,  ample,  and  nervous ;  his  language  seems  entirely 
modern,  and,  excepting  a  few  differences  in  sj^elling  and  a  few  obsolete  words, 
separated  by  only  a  few  years  from  the  reign  of  Henry  IV."  Yet  there  was 
nearly  a  century  between  Philijjpe  de  Comines  and  the  King  of  Navarre. 

During  the  reign  of  Francois  I.  there  was  a  tendency  to  imitate  the 
Italian,  and  for  a  hundred  years  this  tendency  ^srevailed,  but  at  the  same  time 
the  language  was  fortified  by  its  continuous  contact  with  Greek  and  Latin. 
Rabelais  satirizes  in  "Pantagruel"  this  abuse  of  Latinism,  which  Geoffroy 


LANGUAGES.  361 


Tory  had  previously  condemned  by  his  denunciation  of  the  "  skimmers  of 
Latin"  in  the  preface  to  "  Champfleury,"  which  contains  an  "exhortation  to 
set  the  French  language  in  good  order,  so  as  to  speak  with  elegance  in  good 
and  wholesome  French"  (Fig.  302).  llabelais,  while  very  justly  ridiculing 
the  jargon  of  the  French  students,  was  not  himself  sufficiently  on  his  guard 
against  erudition  of  st3de,  but  he  none  the  less  raised  to  the  highest  degree  of 
perfection  the  language  of  the  sixteenth  century.  Clement  Marot  and  like 
poets  of  his  school,  Bonaventure  des  Periers  and  others,  sought  their  models, 
as  Francois  Villon  had  done,  in  the  authors  of  the  thirteenth  century,  and 
they  were  the  custodians  of  the  real  French  language,  clear  and  transparent, 
precise  and  correct,  elegant  and  witty.  Calvin  and  several  Protestant  writers 
belong  to  this  school,  but  their  style  was  harder,  colder,  and  somewhat 
colourless. 

The  sixteenth  century  teems  with  chefs-d'ceuvre  of  every  kind,  but  the 
finest  productions  of  French  genius  are  tainted  with  Neologism,  Hellenism, 
and  Latinism,  and  the  courtier-like  and  Italianised  language,  as  Henri  Estienno 
termed  it  in  his  treatise  ujjon  this  subject,  penueated  from  the  court  of  the 
Valois  into  the  spoken  rather  than  into  the  written  language.  For  the  most 
part  it  was  the  poets — and  the  best  of  them  into  the  bargain — who,  owing  to 
their  affection  for  Greek,  Latin,  and  Italian,  became  the  demolishers  and 
ravagers  of  the  French  language.  Eonsard  and  the  Pleiade  were  the  main 
promoters  of  this  deplorable  change.  (See  below,  chaj)ter  on  National  Foctrij.) 
The  prose-writers,  on  the  other  hand,  set  themselves  against  this  sacrilege, 
and  resolutely  remained  French.  Llistorians  such  as  Blaise  de  Montluc, 
humanists  like  Amyot,  polemists  like  Henri  Estienne,  narrators  like  Bona- 
venture des  Periers  and  Noel  du  Fail,  and  moralists  like  Montaigne,  show 
that  the  French  lansruaffe  was  still  known  in  France. 

o        o 

But  the  worst  enemies  of  the  French  lanjjuage  were  the  reformers  of 
grammar  and  spelling,  Jacques  Pelletier,  Louis  Meigret,  and  Pierre  Ramus. 
These  extravagant  philosophers,  who  wanted  to  change  the  whole  .sj-stem  of 
language,  were  far  more  absurd  than  the  Limoges  student  of  Geoffrey  Tory 
and  of  Rabelais,  and  the  good  sense  of  the  general  public  j^revented  them 
from  making  many  proselytes.  What  little  success  they  did  obtain  was 
neutralised  soon  afterwards  by  Montaigne  and  Malherbe.  Of  the  foi-mcr  'SI. 
Francis  Wey  says,  "  His  was  a  wit  at  once  unrestrained,  undulating,  and 
various  ;  his  genius  was  supple,  disdained  imperious  doctrines,  and  was  pro- 

3   A 


362 


LANGUAGES. 


foimdly  imbued  with.  Roman  thought,  a  subtle  and  tempered  savour  of  which 
pervaded  his  style.  His  erudition  as  a  philosopher  invigorated  his  genius 
and  his  style ;  his  independence,  unfettered  and  yet  flexible  in  its  course  of 
action,  preserved  him  from  imitative  servility  ;  a  painter  of  the  human  mind, 
he  knew  no  model  but  nature,  and  could  only  speak  the  language  which 
corresponded  with  his  thoughts.  He  exjDressed  that  language  without  trans- 
lating it."  Montaigne  is,  in  fact,  the  writer  who,  before  Pascal'*  time,  made 
the  best  and  most  remarkable  use  of  the  French  language. 

Malherbe  seems  to  have  made  it  his  task  to  free  the  language  from  the 
servitude  of  Italianism  and  Hellenism.  He  did  his  work  with  unbending 
sternness,  and  he  restored  to  poetry  its  national  characteristics,  while  main- 
taining it  in  the  regions  of  the  most  majestic  lyrism.  To  him  we  owe  French 
verse  which  possessed  the  primordial  features  of  the  French  language — purity, 
clearness,  and  truth.  But  Henry  TV.  did  more  than  any  one  else  to  renovate 
the  old  French  language  and  French  wit ;  for  that  king,  who  hated  affecta- 
tion and  despised  Greek  and  Latin  pathos,  was  the  personification  of  common 
sense.  He  thought  like  a  philosopher,  spoke  like  a  soldier,  and  wrote  at  once 
like  Brantome  and  Amyot.  The  French  language,  which  tended  to  become 
Italian  under  the  Yalois,  was  being  made  Spanish  during  the  League  ;  but  it 
once  more  became  essentially  French  under  Henry  IV. 


Fig.  302.— The  Broken  Jar.— Token  of  Geoffrey  Tory,  Bookseller,  at  Paris,  in  the  first  Edition 
of  his  "  Champtleury,"  1529,  small  folio. 


EOMANCES. 


Origin  of  the  Name  Romance. — Greek  and  Latin  Romances. — The  Discussion  of  the  Savants  as  to 
the  first  French  Romances. — These  Romances  were  the  Emianation  of  Popular  Songs  and 
Latin  Chronicles. — Ancient  Romances  in  Prose  and  Rhyme. — The  Three  3Iaterea  (Metres)  of 
the  Chansons  de  Geste. — Their  Classification. — Manuscripts  of  the  Jugglers. — Assemhlies  and 
Tromeurs. — The  "  Chanson  de  Roland." — Progress  of  Romancerie  (Ballad  Songs)  during  the 
Crusades.  —  Breton  Romances.  —  Tristan.  — Lancelot. — Merlin.  —  The  Holy  Grail. — 
Decadence  of  Romances  in  the  Fourteenth  Century. — Remodelling  of  the  Early  Romances. — 
The  Short  Romances  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — Romance  Abroad. — The  "  Amadis." 


OYELS  and  romances,  or  works  of  imagination 
of  a  similar  character,  were  in  great  demand 
in  Greece  and  Rome,  e.speciallj'  among  those 
who  had  no  business  occupation,  and  who 
read  for  amusement  rather  than  for  instruc- 
tion. The  name  romance  (which  meant  a 
work  written  in  the  Romance  tongue)  was 
not  used  until  the  eleventh  or  twelfth  cen- 
tury, and  with  a  very  diffei-cnt  meaning 
from  that  which  now  attaches  to  it. 

The  ancient  Latin  and  Greek  romances 
were  merely  recitals  of  imaginary  occurrences.  The  "Satire  "  of  Petronius  and 
the  "  Golden  Ass"  of  Apuleius  were  doubtless  imitated  very  frequently  in  the 
Roman  literature  of  the  time  of  the  Caesars,  but  it  is  in  the  literature  of  Greece 
that  we  must  look  for  the  progres.s  of  a  literary  school  which  long  held  its  sway 
at  Constantinople,  and  throughout  the  empire  of  the  East.  Achilles  Tatius 
of  Alexandria  set  up  the  model  for  this  kind  of  book  when  he  composed  the 
"  Loves  of  Clitophon  and  Leucippe  "  in  the  third  century,  and  he  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Heliodorus,  Bishop  of  Tricca,  in  Thcssaly,  who  wrote  the  "  I^oves  of 
Theagenes  and  of  Chariclea,"  and  Longus,  who  wrote  the  "  Loves  of  Daphnis 
and  Chloe."     The  last  named  was  unequalled  for  its  simplicity  and  grace,  and 


364  ROMANCES. 


stood  far  above  the  love  romances  published  by  Theodore  Prodromos,  Nicetas 
Eugenianus,  and  a  number  of  other  writers  in  the  twelfth  century. 

The  Middle  Ages,  however,  cared  little  for  stories  of  profane  love  and 
works  of  pagan  origin,  but  in  the  eighth  century  St.  John  Damascenus 
composed  in  Greek  a  sort  of  romance  of  mystic  love  concerniag  the  legend 
of  St.  Barlaam  and  Josaphat,  King  of  India,  and  this  fabulous  story  was  so 
warmly  welcome  that  it  was  translated  into  every  language.  We  must  then 
come  down  to  the  twelfth  century  to  find  any  fabulous  stories  written  in  Latin 
which  can  be  connected  with  the  literature  of  romance ;  as,  for  instance,  the 
"Romance  of  the  Seven  Sages"  {Septem  Sapientes),  translated  or  imitated 
from  the  Hebrew  by  a  monk  of  the  Abbey  of  Haute-Selve,  and  the  celebrated 
compilation  entitled  "Gesta  Eomanorum."  When  these  two  works  appeared, 
the  name  of  romance  was  already  given  to  the  chansons  cle  geste  and  other 
stories  of  chivalry,  of  wonderland,  or  of  religion,  which  were  written  in 
"Homance"  verse  or  in  "Romance"  prose. 

For  nearly  half  a  century  the  most  gifted  scholars  of  France,  Germany, 
and  Belgium  have  been  endeavouring  to  trace  the  origin  of  the  old  French 
romances,  and  M.  Paulin  Paris,  more  especially,  has  elucidated  this  question 
better  than  any  one  else  by  being  the  first  to  publish  the  early  text  of  some  of 
these  romances.  His  system,  which  appears  to  us  the  most  logical  and  the 
most  satisfactory,  has  been  discussed  and  opposed  by  such  men  as  Michelet, 
Edgar  Quinet,  and  Leon  Gautier ;  yet  the  last  named,  great  as  is  his  expe- 
rience on  such  a  subject,  could  only  retard  the  solution  of  the  literary  and 
historic  problem  which  his  predecessor,  M.  Paidin  Paris,  had  all  but  solved. 
We  propose,  therefore,  to  sum  up  the  opinions  given  by  so  many  learned 
disputants,  and  to  endeavour  to  draw  from  them  some  logical  conclusion. 

According  to  M.  Gautier's  system,  which  is  based  upon  great  erudition, 
the  chansons  de  geste  and  the  romances  of  chivalry,  invented  and  set  to  verse 
by  the  jugglers  in  the  twelfth  century,  had  their  origin  in  the  popular  songs 
and  Teutonic  cantilence.  But  M.  Gautier  could  not  discover  these  cantUenffi, 
or  original  songs,  in  the  Germanic  language.  He  cites  only  one,  which  he 
calls  the  Cantilena  of  Hildebrand,  and  which  has  nothing  in  common  with  the 
chansons  cle  geste,  inasmuch  as  it  makes  mention  of  Odoacer,  King  of  the 
Heruli,  at  the  end  of  the  fifth  centurj^.  He  also  mentions  a  popular  song  of 
the  seventh  century,  which  the  Bishop  of  Meaux,  Hildegaire,  has  collated 
and  translated  into  Latin  in  his  "  Life  of  St.  Faron,"  and  which  is  supposed 


ROjIIAXCES.  365 


to  have  been  composed  in  Romance  to  celebrate  the  victory  of  Clotaire  II. 
over  the  Saxons.  Finally,  he  mentions  a  very  beautiful  Teutonic  song  about 
the  battle  which  Louis  III.,  son  of  Louis  the  Stammerer,  fouo-ht  asjainst  the 
Normans  at  Saucourt  in  881.  Eut  M.  Gautier  is  obliged  to  confess  that  these 
Teutonic  cantilense,  which  were  believed  to  be  the  germ  of  the  chansons  de  geste 
of  the  twelfth  century,  are  no  longer  in  existence,  confining  himself  to  the 
supposition  that  thej'  did  at  one  time  exist,  because  Eginhard  relates  in  his 
Chronicles  that  Charlemagne  gave  strict  orders  that  the  old  songs  {antiquksima 
carmina),  in  which  were  celebrated  the  mighty  deeds  and  wars  of  ancient 
times,  should  be  collected  and  transcribed. 

The  existence  of  these  old  popular  songs  is  beyond  all  question,  but  those 
which  Charlemagne  had  collected  were  only  preserved  in  the  memory  of  the 
inhabitants  of  Gaul  bj'  being  translated  into  the  rustic  or  Romance  tongue. 
Thus  the  Anglo-Norman  poet,  Robert  Wace,  in  his  "  Roman  du  Rou,"  recalls 
in  the  following  lines  the  primitive  chansons  de  geste  which  were  sung,  pre- 
viously to  the  battle  of  Hastings,  in  the  presence  of  the  army  of  William  the 
Conqueror  : — 

"  Taillefer  qui  mult  bien  cantoit 
Sur  un  cheval  qui  tost  aloit 
Uevant  eus  s'en  alloit  cantant 
De  Callemaine  et  de  Rollant 
Et  d'OUvier  et  dea  vassaux 
Qui  morurent  a  Eainschevaux." 

Here  was  the  veritable  origin  of  the  "  Chanson  de  Roland,"  which  is  rightly 
regarded  as  the  oldest  of  the  chansons  dc  geste  which  were  composed  into 
Romance.  That  it  is  formed  of  an  aggregation  of  various  popular  songs  which 
had  already  been  romanced — that  is  to  say,  written  in  the  vidgar  or  Romance 
tongue — is  very  probable ;  but  it  is  impossible  to  believe  that  the  chansons  dc 
geste  relating  to  the  reign  of  Charlemagne  and  his  successors,  excepting, 
perhaps,  the  famous  "Garin  le  Loherain,"  were  composed  by  French  jugglers 
after  Teutonic  cantilena;.  It  was  undoubtedly  the  popidar  songs  in  the 
Romance  language  which  were  the  preludes  of  the  chansons  de  geste  and  the 
great  romances  cf  chivalry.  But,  as  M.  Paulin  Paris  has  proved  to  demonstra- 
tion, these  popular  songs  had  first  given  birth  to  histories  and  chronicles 
written  in  Latin,  which  were  the  principal  source  of  the  rhymed  romances. 

It  may  be  affirmed,  for  instance,  that  the  Latin  Chronicle  of  Nennius,  the 


366 


ROMANCES. 


"History  of  tlie  Bretons,"  and  the  "Life  of  Merlin,"  written  in  Latin  by 
Geoifrejr  of  Monmouth,  were  the  materials  used  by  Wace  in  his  romances  of 
the  "Ron"  and  of  the  "Brut,"  as  also  by  Robert  de  Borron  in  his  romance, 
"Joseph  of  Arimathea,"  and  by  the  anonymous  author  of  the  "St.  Graal." 
Then,  too,  there  is  the  Latin  Chronicle  attributed  to  Archbishop  Turpin  of 
Rheims.  This  spurious  Chronicle  is  in  two  parts  :  the  first,  consisting  of  five 
chapters,  was  written  by  a  monk  of  Conipostello  in  the  middle  of  the  eleventh 
century  ;  the  second,  beginning  at  Chapter  YL,  is  the  work  of  a  monk  of 
St.  Andrew  of  Vienna,  who  wrote  between  the  years  1109  and  1119.     Such,  at 


Fig.  303. — Joshua,  King  David,  and  Judas  Maccabs3us. — From  a  Series  of  Ancient  Engravings, 
representing  the  Kine  Heroes  of  Sacred,  Ancient,  and  Modern  History,  who  figure  in  the 
liomance,  "  Le  Triomphe  des  Neuf  Preux."  These  Coloured  Drawings,  apparently  of  the 
Fifteenth  Century,  form  the  Frontispiece  of  a  Manuscript  in  the  Colbert  Room,  National 
Library,  Paris. 

least,  are  the  conclusions  arrived  at  by  M.  Gaston  Paris.  This  Chronicle  at 
once  acquired  such  celebrity  that  five  or  six  prose  translations  were  made, 
and  this  was  the  source  from  which  the  jugglers  obtained  much  of  their  lore. 
Chrestien  de  Troyes,  the  beginning  of  whose  romances  is  here  appended, 
intimates  that  he  has  merely  put  into  verse  a  rose  romance  : — 

"  Chrestiens  qui  entent  et  paine 
A  rimoier  le  meillor  conte 
Par  le  commandement  le  Comte 


ROMANCES. 


367 


Qu'il  soit  contez  en  cort  royal : 

Ce  est  li  contes  de  Graal 

Dont  li  quens  li  bailla  le  livre,"  &c. 

Claude  Fauchet,  in  his  "  liecueil  de  rOrigino  de  la  Languo  et  Poesiefran- 
coise,"  from  which  these  lines  are  taken,  adds,  "  This  shows  that  some  of  the 
romances  were  written  in  prose  before  being  rhymed."  M.  Gautier,  there- 
fore, is  in  error  when  he  asserts  that  the  romances  in  prose  date  only  from  the 
fifteenth  century ;  on  the  contrarj^  it  is  certain  that  the  prose  versions  were 
contemporary  with  those  in  rhyme.     Claude  Fauchet  was  of  opinion  that  the 


Fig.  304. — Imaginary  Election  of  St.  Peter  as  Pope.  "  St.  Pol  kissed  the  body  of  St.  Peter  in  the 
prison  at  Antioch,  and,  at  the  request  of  the  two  Apostles,  Our  Lord  restored  to  life  the  eon  of 
a  King  who  had  been  dead  more  than  fifteen  years ;  and  henceforward  St.  Peter  was  seated 
in  the  chair  as  Pope  and  true  Lieutenant  of  God  upon  earth,  and  held  the  scat  as  Pope  for 
the  term  of  eight  years  holily."  In  the  division  to  the  left  is  seen  St.  Peter  being  tonsured 
by  the  "  tirans,"  and  this  is  erroneously  said  to  be  the  origin  of  the  ecclesiastical  tonsure. — 
Miniature  of  the  "Siinte  Escripture." — Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — In  the 
Burgundy  Library,  Bru.ssels. 


printed  romances  of  his  day,  such  as  "Lancelot  dii  Lac,"  "  Tristan,"  and  otlicrs, 
were  rewritten  after  the  old  prose  and  \erse  editions.  We  know  that  the 
I'omauccs  in  rhyme  were  sung,  or'  rather  recited,  to  the  sounds  of  some  instru- 


368  ROMANCES. 


ment,  while  the  prose  romances  were  merely  read  or  narrated  without  a 
musical  accompaniment  of  any  kind,  and  rhyme  must  naturally  have  been 
better  adapted  than  prose  to  the  chansons  de  geste  during  the  most  flourishing 
period  of  romances ;  that  is  to  say,  in  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries. 

M.  Paulin  Paris  has  set  forth  very  clearly  the  reasons  why  the  name  of 
romance  (roman)  was  given  in  France  to  the  narratives  of  chivalry  before  it 
became  the  special  name  for  a  whole  branch  of  literature.  For  some  time  it 
had  been  the  custom  throughout  France  to  talk  Romance,  but  it  was  not  until 
the  close  of  the  eleventh  century  that  any  attempt  was  made  to  write  in 
Romance :  whatever  was  thus  written  in  the  vulgar  tongue  was  Romance. 
M.  Paulin  Paris  adds,  "  In  this  way  the  same  generic  name  was  retained  for 
all  these  writings.  There  were  romances  of  the  Bible  (Fig.  303),  romances 
of  the  Crusades,  romances  of  King  Arthur,  romances  of  the  Virgin,  romances 
of  the  Saints  (Fig.  304),  of  the  Passion,  of  the  Image  of  the  World,  of 
Sallust,"  &c.  They  were  for  the  most  part  narratives  of  warlike  and  wonder- 
ful adventures,  which  the  French  trouveurs  and  jugglers  had  told  during  the 
Crusades  to  all  the  foreigners  who  composed  the  armies  from  beyond  the  seas, 
and  these  foreigners  in  course  of  time  gave  the  unique  name  of  romance  to  aU 
works  of  imagination  written  in  prose.  Dante,  who  could  write  and  speak 
French,  has  himself  fixed  the  meaning  of  the  word  at  the  end  of  the 
thirteenth  century  in  the  line — 

"  Versi  d'amore,  prose  di  romanzi." 

Thus  the  romances  in  prose  were  as  numerous  as  those  in  verse  when  Dante 
came  to  Paris  to  study  the  language  of  Oil. 

The  jugglers  had,  from  the  thirteenth  century,  divided  romances  into 
three  categories,  which  proceeded  from  three  distinct  sources :  the  romances 
of  Charlemagne,  the  romances  of  the  Round  Table,  and  the  romances  of 
Greek  and  Roman  antiquity.  These  three  categories  of  romances  are  thus 
designated  in  the  "  Song  of  the  Saxons  :  " — 

"  Ne  sont  que  trois  materes  a  tout  home  entendant : 
De  France,  de  Bretagne  et  de  Rome  la  Grant, 
Et  de  ees  trois  materes  n'i  a  nule  semblant. 
Li  conte  de  Bretagne  sont  et  vain  et  plaisant, 
Cil  de  Rome  sont  sage  et  de  sens  apparent, 
Cil  de  France  sont  voir  {vruis)."  .  .  . 


J^OJ/J.VCFS. 


369 


But:  eacli  of  these  miittcrs  conij^rised  a  number  of  different  subjects,  which 
corresponded  with  one  another  by  a  succession  of  homogeneous  and  analogous 
facts.  They  were  so  many  cycles  forming  one  vast  whole,  in  which  were 
grouped  personages  of  the  same  race  and  of  the  same  character.  The  throe 
principal  cycles  of  the  Geste  in  France,  for  instance,  were  those  which  liad 


Fig.  .30.5.— A  Compiler. — Miniature  from  a  Manu,script  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. 
In  the  Burgundy  Library,  Bruasek. 

for  their  central  figures  Charlemagne,  William  of  Orange,  and  Renaud  dc 
Montauban,  as  is  indicated  by  the  following  lino  from  the  romance  of 
"  Girars  do  Viane  :  " — "  2\ 'ot  que  trois  Gestes  en  Franco  hi  garnie."     A  gcsle 

3   B 


370  ROMANCES. 


may  te  compared  to  a  tree  of  ancient  growth,  the  branches  of  which  spread 
out  in  all  directions  from  the  mother  trunk ;  and  each  of  these  branches, 
grafted  thereupon,  gave  birth  to  new  branches. 

M.  Gautier  has  classed  in  systematic  order  all  the  romances  in  rhyme  stiU 
extant  which  belong  to  the  three  great  cycles  of  France,  and  the  mere 
mention  of  them  shows  how  rich  French  literature  is  in  works  of  this  kind. 
The  "  Geste  du  Roi,"  or  of  "Charlemagne,"  is  divided  into  six  parts: — -Ist, 
Berte  aux  Grans  Pies,  Enfances  Charlemagne,  Enfances  Roland.  2nd,  Aspre- 
mont,  Fierabras,  Otinel,  Gui  de  Bourgogne,  Entry  into  Spain,  the  Capture  of 
Pampelona,  la  Chanson  de  Roland,  Gaidon,  Anse'is  de  Carthage.  3rd,  Acquin, 
or  the  Conquest  of  Little  Brittany ;  Jehan  de  Lanson ;  Simon  de  Pouihe ; 
Galien ;  Voyage  to  Jerusalem.  4th,  Song  of  the  Saxons.  6th,  Macaire, 
Huon  de  Bordeaux.  6th,  Charlemagne,  by  Girart  of  Amiens.  The  "  Geste  of 
Garin  de  Montglane,"  or  of  "  William  of  Orange,"  comprises  no  less  than 
twentj^-three  or  twenty-four  romances,  which,  chronologically  arranged,  are  as 
follows: — Les  Enfances  Garin  de  Montglane,  Garin  de  Montglane,  Girars 
de  Viane,  Hernaut  de  Beaulande,  Renier  de  Gennes,  Aimeri  de  Narbonne, 
les  Enfances  Guillaume,  le  Departement  des  Enfans  Aimeri,  le  Siege  de 
Narbonne,  le  Couronnement  Looys,  le  Charroi  de  Nismes,  la  Prise  d'Orange, 
le  Siege  de  Barbastre  (Beuves  de  Comarchis,  as  revised),  Guibert  d'Andrenas, 
Mort  d' Aimeri  de  Narbonne,  Enfances  Vivien,  Chevalerie  Vivien,  Aliscanps, 
Rainoart,  Moniage  Guillaume,  Bataille  Loquifer,  Moniage  Rainoart,  Renier, 
la  Prise  de  Cordres,  Foulques  de  Candie.  There  are  but  ten  or  eleven 
romances  in  the  "  Geste  of  Renaud  de  Montauban,"  or  "Doon  de  Mayence," 
viz. : — Doon  de  Mayence,  Gaufrey,  les  Enfances  Ogier,  la  Chevalerie  Ogier,  Aye 
d' Avignon,  Gui  de  ISTanteuil,  Tristan  de  Nanteuil,  Parise  la  Duchesse,  Maugis 
d'Aigremont,  Vivien  I'Amachour  de  Monbranc,  and  les  Quatre  Fils  Aimon, 
or  Renaut  de  Montauban.  The  other  cycles  are  composed  of  the  following 
elements : — Cycle  of  the  Crusade :  Helias,  les  Enfances  Godefroi,  les  Chetifs, 
Antioch,  Jerusalem,  Baudouin  de  Sebourc,  and  le  Bastart  de  Bouillon.  The 
"  Geste  des  Lorrains : " — Hervis  de  Metz  ;  Carin  de  Loherain  ;  Girbert  de  Metz  ; 
Anseis,  son  of  Gierbert ;  and  Yon.  The  "  Geste  du  Nord  : " — Raovd  de  Cambrai, 
Gormond  and  Isembart.  "  Burarundian  Geste  : " — Girart  de  Roussillon  and 
Aubri  le  Bourgoing.  ''Petite  Geste  de  Blaives:" — Amis  et  Amiles,  and 
Jourdain  de  Blaives.  "Petite  Geste  de  St.  Gilles : "— Aiol  and  Elie  de 
St.   Gilles.      "English    Geste:" — Horn  and  Beuves  d'Hanstonne.     Various 


ROMANCES. 


37' 


Gestes: — Sipciis  de  Vignevaiix,   Floovaiit,  Cliarlos   the   Bald,  Hugh   Capet, 
Doon  de  la  Iloche,  Lion  de  Bourges,  Florent  and  (Jetavian,  &.c. 


Fifj.  ;i(l(;.— 'Jlie  St.  iM.uk   l.ihraiy,  VrTiice,  ioundfd  in  thr  Fill. ■.nth  ('ti.tiiry  l.y 
Cardinal  Besaarion. 


A  perusal  of  the  titles  of  these  chanmiis  de  cjcsfe  and  romances,  some  of 


372  ROMANCES. 


whicli  have  not  yet  been  piiblislied,  and  most  of  which  contain  from  six  to 
eight  thousand  lines,  will  give  an  idea  of  the  extent  to  which  the  romance 
literature  flourished  from  the  twelfth  to  the  thirteenth  century.  There  are, 
in  addition  to  the  above,  some  twentj'  romances  which  belong  to  the  Brittany 
cycle,  and  four  or  five  very  long  ones  which  should  be  included  in  the  cycle 
of  Rome  or  of  antiquity  :  amongst  others,  the  "  Romance  of  the  Seven  Sages" 
and  the  well-known  "  Romance  of  Alexander,"  begun  in  the  twelfth  century 
by  Lambert  "  li  Tors,"  and  continued  bj^  Alexandre  de  Bernay.  Most  of  the 
romances  which  are  given  above  are  in  ten-syllable  verse,  arranged  in 
couplets,  or  kdsscs,  with  assonances,  which  were  not  replaced  by  rhymes  until 
the  second  age  of  romances.  Many  others,  less  ancient,  are  in  lines  of  twelve 
syllables,  called  Alexandrines,  because  the  first  attempt  to  write  lines  with 
this  metre  was  made  in  the  "  Romance  of  Alexander."  There  are  a  few  in 
lines  of  eight  syllables,  rhymed  in  couplets,  and  this  s}='stem  of  versification 
seems  to  have  been  applied,  in  the  first  instance,  to  romances  of  a  more  homely 
kind,  which,  like  the  well-known  "  Roman  de  Renard,"  have  the  vivacity  and 
sprightliness  of  the  fabliau,  and  appeal  more  to  the  wit  than  to  the  imagina- 
tion of  the  readers,  or,  it  should  rather  be  said,  of  the  listeners. 

The  jugglers  were  very  loath  to  part  with  the  manuscripts  of  their  chansons 
de  ffcute  and  romances,  and  it  was  not  for  some  time  that  these  manuscripts 
were  to  be  found  in  the  libraries  of  monasteries  and  castles.  Many  of  these 
manuscripts,  as  one  can  see,  have  been  copied  from  the  original  at  the  cost  of 
some  wealthy  noble.  The  jugglers  themselves  were  always  eager  to  procure 
good  romances,  which  they  learnt  by  heart  and  sang  in  public,  to  the  accom- 
paniment of  the  violin  or  the  i-ofr.  Those  Avho  had  the  best  repertory  were 
certain  of  meeting  with  the  most  numerous  audiences  during  their  peregrina- 
tions through  the  country.  These  jugglers,  although  in  the  Middle  Ages 
they  formed  one  vast  association,  had  many  points  of  diiference  the  one  with 
the  other,  and  preserved  the  distinctions  of  rank,  which  were  dependent  in  the 
main  upon  their  talent  and  fortune.  Some  of  them  would  not  sing  other  than 
national  songs,  and  only  condescended  to  appear  in  the  houses  of  the  great 
nobles.  They  travelled  about  on  horseback,  accompanied  by  their  servants, 
received  a  warm  welcome  at  the  castles  and  abbeys  which  the_v  visited,  and 
were  handsomely  paid.  Others,  again,  excited  susi^icion  by  their  mean  and 
hungry  appearance,  and  were  often  ordered  away  fi'om  the  door  of  the  houses 
before  which  they  halted  to   sing  for  their   supper.     It  may  be  taken  for 


/^OJ/AATES. 


373 


<rranted    too,  that  their  stock  of  songs  was  limited,  and  that  thoy  were  as 
little  versed  in  the  art  of  music  as  of  tale-tellers. 

Amongst  the  jugglers  were  a  great  many  a.ssriiihlnirx  and  froiinitrs.     The 


rifWfW 


Fig.  307. — Coronation  of  Charlemagne  in  the  City  of  Jerusalem. — Miniatures  from  the  "Cbroniqiies 
de  Charlemagne,"  taken  from  Manuscript  No.  9,066,  in  the  Burgundy  Libraiy,  Brussels 
(Fifteenth  Century). 


latter  comjjo.sed  romances  in  jjrose  and  in  rhyme.    The  asaeiiibleKis  (Fig.  305), 
though  capable  of  writing  in  jjrose  or  in  ver.se,  more  generally  confined  them- 


374  ROMANCES. 


selves  to  compiling  the  various  episodes  of  a  romance  or  of  several  romances 
so  as  to  vary  the  impressions  produced  on  the  audience.  These  assembleurs, 
like  the  Greek  rhapsodists  of  Homer's  time,  modified  the  text  which  they 
intended  to  narrate  or  to  sing,  and  they  in  many  instances  corrected  and 
transformed  the  ancient  romances  when  the  language  in  which  they  were 
couched  had  become  obsolete,  and  especially  when  the  popular  taste  of  the 
day  called  for  the  addition  of  some  new  ornaments.  This  is  how  it  came  to 
pass  that  the  primitive  text  of  many  romances  underwent  changes  of  dialect, 
the  existence  of  which  it  would  otherwise  be  difficult  to  understand.  Some- 
times an  assemblevir  who  desired  to  transpose  the  original  into  another  dialect, 
or  even  into  another  language,  simply  changed  the  termination  of  the  words, 
and  so  composed  a  sort  of  grammatical  balderdash  utterly  incomprehensible. 
There  still  exist  certain  romances  written  in  the  Oil  language  which  have 
been  thus  travestied  by  the  jugglers  into  the  Limousin  and  Provencal  dialects, 
and  even  into  Italian.  The  public  library  of  St.  Mark,  Venice  (Fig.  306), 
contains  some  curious  manuscripts  of  these  Italianised  French  romances, 
which  are,  while  preserving  the  precise  original  form,  neither  more  nor  less 
than  gibberish. 

Most  of  the  romances  belonged,  as  we  have  said,  not  only  to  the  ancient 
popular  songs  in  Celtic,  Teutonic,  or  Romance,  but  also  to  the  early  legends 
written  in  Latin  under  the  name  of  Gesta.  These  two  distinct  but  not  incon- 
gruous sources  are  often  to  be  traced  in  the  romances  of  the  first  epoch,  in 
which  the  author,  in  order  to  distinguish  the  two  different  origins,  repeats 
either  cum  dit  la  Gcste,  or  si  cum  dit  la  Chanson.  The  Geste  soon  acquired 
more  influence  than  the  Chanson,  and  nearly  all  the  trouveurs  felt  no  scruple  in 
declaring  that  they  had  obtained  their  stories  from  some  of  the  old  monasteries, 
notably  from  the  Abbey  of  St.  Denis.  This  is  the  case  with  several  romances 
relating  to  the  history  of  France.  In  the  "  Enfances  Guillaume,"  a  gentil 
inolne  (a  good-natured  monk)  is  said  by  the  author  to  have  supplied  him 
with  the  materials  for  his  work,  "  Si  m'a  les  vers  enseignes  et  monstres." 

The  author  of  "  Berte  aux  Grans  Pies  "  states  even  more  explicitly  that  it 
was  a  courteous  monk  (moiiie  cortois)  of  St.  Denis,  named  Savari,  who 

"  Le  livre  as  histoires  me  monstra.'' 

Moreover,  the  monks  of  St.  Denis  themselves  composed  fables  which  they 


T^OJfAXCJiS. 


375 


declared  to  bo  original  texts,  and  which  the  romance-writers,  naturally 
inclined  to  crediilitj^  accepted  blindfold  when  they  had  occasion  to  quote 
them.  Thus,  exclusively  of  the  spurious  Chronicle  of  Turpin,  which  was  at 
that  time  accepted  as  authentic,  there  were  two  or  three  old  Latin  poems 
upon  the  supposed  conquests  of  Charlemagne  in  Spain  and  the  East.     One  of 


Fig.  308.— The  Battle  of  Roncevaux  and  the  Death  of  Roland.— Fragment  of  a  Stained-gla^s 
Window  in  Chartrcs  Cathedral  (Thirteenth  Century). 


these  legends,  which  was  composed  during  the  eleventh  centurj'  within  the 
walls  of  the  Abbey  of  St.  Denis,  contained  the  narrative  of  a  Crusade  which 
the  great  Emperor  was  supposed  to  have  led  himself  to  Jerusalem  in  order  to 
reseat  the  Patriarch  of  the  Holy  City  upon  his  archicpiscopal  throne.     This 


376  ROMANCES. 


work,  as  well  as  the  Chronicle  of  Turpiu,  served  as  a  theme  for  several 
romances,  which  made  the  princes  and  lords  who  took  part  in  later  Crusades 
feel  quite  certain  that  Charlemagne  had  undertaken  the  journey  to  Palestine 
(Fig.  307). 

In  any  event,  the  authors  of  many  of  the  early  romances  remain  unknown, 
and  it  was  not  until  the  second  epoch  of  this  period  of  literature  that  the 
trouveurs  appended  their  names  either  at  the  beginning  or  at  the  end  of 
their  works.  Moreover,  there  is  good  ground  for  believing  that  the  jugglers, 
who  recited  or  sang  the  romances,  were  very  chary  of  giving  the  author's 
name,  as  they  very  often  claimed  the  authorship  for  themselves.  The  first 
romances  preceded  by  onlj^  a  very  fcAV  j^ears  the  period  of  the  Crusades,  and  must 
have  almost  coincided  with  the  inauguration  of  the  feudal  epoch,  according  to 
Claude  Fauchet,  who  says,  "  It  was  at  this  time,  I  believe,  that  romances 
began  to  be  written,  and  that  the  jugglers,  trouveurs,  and  singers  frequented 
the  courts  of  these  princes  (grand  feudatories  of  the  crown  of  France),  to 
recite  and  sing  their  narratives  without  rhj'me,  their  songs,  and  other  poetic 
inventions,  usino'  the  rustic  Romance  lansuase  as  well  as  that  which  was 
understood  hj  more  people."  Thus  we  see  that  Claude  Fauchet  appears 
convinced  that  the  romances  in  prose  were  anterior  to  the  romances  in  rh}Tne. 
He  even  says  in  so  many  words,  "  If  any  of  j'ou  believe  that  the  romance  was 
written  only  in  rhyme,  I  will  tell  him  that  there  were  also  romances  not 
rhymed  and  in  prose.  For  in  the  "  Life  of  Charles  the  Great "  (Chronicle  of 
Turpin),  put  into  French  before  the  year  1200  at  the  request  of  Yoland, 
Comtesse  de  St.  Paul,  sister  of  Baudoin,  Comte  de  Hainan,  surnamed  the 
Bastisseur,  in  the  fourth  book  the  author  saj's,  "  Baudoin,  Comte  de  Hainan, 
discovered  at  Sens  in  Burgundy  the  '  Life  of  CharlemagJie,'  and,  when  on  his 
death-bed,  gave  it  to  his  sister  Yoland,  Comtesse  de  Sainct  Paul,  who  asked 
me  to  publish  it  in  a  prose  romance,  because  many  people  who  would  not  read 
it  in  Latin  would  read  it  as  a  romance." 

The  rhymed  romance  of  Charlemagne,  which  the  translator  of  Turpin 
declared  to  be  spurious,  was  apparently  the  famous  "  Chanson  de  Roland," 
which  is  attributed  to  a  troviveur  named  Turolde,  and  which,  according  to 
M.  Leon  Grautier,  was  composed  after  popular  songs  of  Teutonic  origin  and 
tendencies,  while  M.  Paulin  Paris  and  other  learned  critics  believe  that  it 
belons-s  to  the  Romance  or  rustic  lano-uag-e.  The  "  Chanson  de  Roland  "  is 
a  true  French  Iliad,  full  of  lofty,  generous,  and  patriotic  ideas,  and  it  may  be 


ROMANCES. 


ill 


termed  the  highest  and  most  touching  specimen  of  early  French  poetry.  The 
predominant  feature  in  it  is  attachment  to  the  Catholic  faith  and  to  gentle 
France.  When  Roland  is  expiring  from  the  effect  of  his  wounds  in  the  defile 
of  Ronceraus  (Fig.  308),  his  last  look  and  his  last  thought  are  for  France. 
Assuredly  there  is  nothing  German  or  Teutonic  in  this  the  oldest  of  the 
French  romances,  second  in  order  to  which  was,  we  may  fairly  suppose,  the 
original  version  of  "AKscans."  These  romances  of  the  first  epoch  often 
began  abruptly  ;  as,  for  instance,  the  "  Chanson  de  Roland,"  the  first  two  lines 


of  which  run- 


'  Carles  li  reis,  nostre  emperere  magne, 
Set  anz  tu^  pleins  ad  eated  en  Espaigne." 


This  is  a  very  characteristic  opening  for  a  popular  song,  in  which  it  was 
necessary  to  explain  the  subject  matter  in  a  very  few  words.  It  is  the  poet, 
not  the  juggler,  who  has  to  make  a  direct  appeal  to  the  public  whom  he 
addresses,  that  speaks  in  these  two  lines. 

But  nothing  can  give  so  good  an  idea  of  the  early  chansons  de  gcstc  as  a 
few  quotations,  and  appended  is  the  narrative  of  the  death  of  Roland  at 
Ronceraux  (Fig.  308),  where  the  nephew  of  Charlemagne  was  slain  by  the 
Saracens : — 


'  Roland  sent  que  la  mort  lui  est  proche  : 
Sa  cervelle  s'en  va  par  les  oreiUes. 

Le  voilii  qui  prie  pour  sea  pairs  d'abord,  afin  que  Dieu  les  appelle  , 
Puis,  11  so  reeommande  a  I'ange  Gabriel. 

11  prend  I'olifant  d'une  main,  pour  n'en  pas  avoir  de  reproche, 
Et  de  I'autre  saisit  Durendal,  son  epee. 
11  s'avance  plus  loin  qu'une  porteo  d'arbalete, 

Fait  quelques  pas  sur  la  terre  d'Espagne,  entre  on  un  champ  de  blc, 
Monte  sur  un  tertre.     Sous  deux  beau-x  arbres, 
11  y  a  la  quatre  perrons  de  marbre. 
Roland  tombe  a  I'envers  sur  I'herbe  verte 
Et  se  pame  :  car  la  mort  lui  est  proche.  .  .  . 

A  trois  reprises,  Roland  frappe  sur  le  rocher  pour  briser  son  epee : 

Plus  en  abat  que  je  ne  saurais  dire. 

L'acier  grinco  :  il  no  rompt  pas : 

L'epee  remonte  en  amont  vers  le  ciel. 

Quand  le  comte  s'apercjoit  qu'il  no  la  peut  briser, 

Tout  doucement  il  la  plaint  en  lui-mcme : 

'  Ma  Durendal,  comme  tu  es  belle  et  sainle ! 

3  c 


378  ROMANCES. 


Dans  ta  garde  doree  il  y  a  bien  des  reliques : 

TJne  dent  de  saint  Pierre,  du  sang  de  saint  Basile, 

Des  cheveus  de  monseigneur  saint  Denis, 

Du  vetement  de  la  Yierge  Marie. 

Non,  non,  ce  n'est  pas  droit  que  paiens  te  possedent. 

Ta  place  est  eeulement  entre  des  mains  chretiennes. 

Plaise  a  Dieu  que  tu  ne  tombes  pas  entre  celles  d'un  lache  ! 

Combien  de  terres  j'aurai  par  toi  conquises. 

Que  tient  Charles  a  la  barbe  fleurie, 

Et  qui  sont  aujourd'hui  la  ricbesse  de  I'Enipereur ! 

.  .  .  Et  maintenant  j'ai  grande  douleur,  a  cause  de  cette  epee. 

Plutot  mourir  que  de  la  laisser  aux  Paiens  : 

Que  Dieu  n'inflige  paa  cette  bonte  a  la  France.' 

Eoland  sent  que  la  mort  I'entreprend 

Et  qu'elle  lui  descend  de  la  tete  sur  le  cceur. 

H  court  se  jeter  sous  un  pin, 

Sur  I'berbe  verte  se  couche  face  centre  terre, 

Met  sous  lui  son  olifaut  et  son  epee, 

Et  se  toume  la  tete  du  cote  des  paiena. 

Et  pourquoi  le  fait-U  ?    Ab !  c'est  qu'il  veut 

Faire  dire  a  Charlemagne  et  a  toute  I'armee  des  Francs, 

Le  noble  comte,  qu'il  est  mort  en  conquerant. 

D  bat  sa  coulpe,  il  repete  son  mea  culpa. 

Pour  ses  peches,  au  ciel  LI  tend  son  gant. 

Eoland  sent  que  son  temps  est  fini. 

II  est  la  au  sommet  d'un  pic  qui  regarde  I'Espagne  ; 

D'une  main  il  frappe  sa  poitrine  : 

'  Mea  culpa,  mon  Dieu,  et  pardon  au  nom  de  ta  puissance, 

Pour  mes  peches,  pour  les  petits  et  pour  les  grands. 

Pour  tous  ceux  que  j'ai  fails  depuis  I'beure  de  ma  naissance 

Jusqu'a  ce  jour  oil  je  suis  parvenu.' 

n  tend  a  Dieu  le  gant  de  sa  main  droite, 

Et  Toici  que  les  Anges  du  ciel  s'abattent  pres  de  lui. 

II  est  la  gisant  sous  un  pin,  le  comte  Eoland ; 

II  a  voulu  se  toumer  du  cote  de  I'Espagne. 

D  se  prit  alors  a  se  souvenir  de  plusieurs  choses : 

De  tous  les  royaumes  qu'U  a  conquis, 

Et  de  douce  France,  et  des  gens  de  sa  famille, 

Et  de  Charlemagne,  son  seigneur,  qui  I'a  nourri ; 

II  ne  peut  s'empecher  d'en  pleurer  et  de  soupirer. 

Slais  il  ne  veut  pas  se  mettre  lui-meme  en  oubli, 

Et,  de  nouveau,  reclame  le  pardon  de  Dieu : 

'  0  notre  'STrai  Pere,'  dit-il,  '  qui  jamais  ne  mentis. 

Qui  ressuscitas  saint  Lazare  d' entre  les  morts 

Et  defendis  Daniel  contre  les  lions. 


ROMANCES.  379 


Sauve,  sauve  mon  ame  et  defends-la  contre  tous  perils, 

A  cause  dea  peches  que  j'ui  faits  en  lua  vie.' 

II  a  tendu  a  Dieu  le  gant  de  sa  main  droite  : 

Saint  Gabriel  I'a  re(;u. 

Alors  sa  tete  a'est  inclinee  sur  son  bras, 

Et  il  eat  alle,  mains  jointes,  a  sa  iin. 

Dieu  lui  envoie  un  de  sea  anges  ch^rubins 

Et  saint  Michel  du  Peril. 

Saint  Gabriel  est  venu  avec  eux  : 

lis  emportent  I'ame  du  comte  au  Paradis."  *  .   . 

"  Roland  "  and  the  first  romances  were,  as  we  see,  essentially  French 
creations,  in  which  the  trouvenrs  had  embodied  in  a  literary  and  dramatic 
form  the  scattered  and  uncertain  traditions  which  were  embedded  in  the 
memory  of  the  nobility,  and  vaguely  retained  by  means  of  the  popular  songs 
in  the  recollection  of  the  lower  classes.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  their 
object  was  to  stimulate  the  warlike  and  j)atriotic  feeling  of  the  lords  and 
barons  of  France  who  listened  to  them  with  such  unfeigned  satisfaction. 
It  is  thus  easy  to  infer,  by  comparison  of  dates,  that  they  must  have  come 
into  existence  at  about  the  time  of  the  first  Crusade  in  1095,  and  that  they 
were  imported  into  the  East  during  the  great  Crusade  led  by  Godfrey  de 
Bouillon,  Duke  of  Lorraine,  and  his  brothers,  Baudoin,  Count  of  Flanders, 
and  Eustace,  Count  of  Boulogne  ;  by  Hugh  the  Great,  Count  of  Vermandois, 
son  of  King  Henry  I. ;  by  Rajnnond,  Count  of  Toulouse  ;  by  Robert,  Duke  of 
Normandy  ;  and  by  other  chiefs  of  the  French  race.  The  heroic  songs  of  the 
jugglers  were  well  calculated  to  lessen  the  dreariness  of  the  long  and  perilous 
voyage  undertaken  by  the  chevaliers,  who  remained  absent  for  five  or  six 
years,  and  did  not  consider  their  task  accomplished  until  after  they  had 
captured  Jerusalem  (1099).  It  was  then  that  Godfrey  de  Bouillon,  pro- 
claimed King  by  his  companions  in  aiins,  converted  Palestine  into  a  Christian 
kingdom,  introducing  into  it  the  laws,  the  language,  and  the  customs  of 
France.  It  may  be  said  that  from  this  period  the  cliaiiHons  de  gestc  and 
national  romances  obtained  a  foothold  in  this  new  Franco  of  the  East,  the 
residents  in  which  were  ever  gazing  westward. 

The  romances,  oriffinatinsr  in  France,  returned  thither  with  the  crusaders, 
and  spread  at  the  same  time  tliroughout  Europe,  where  their  popularity 
increased    from    year    to    year.      They  became    the    fashion,    and    romances, 

*  Translation  of  M.  Leon  Gautier. 


38o  ROMIANCFS. 


trouveurs,  and  jugglers  made  their  appearance  in  all  countries.  The  twelfth 
century  was  the  great  epoch  of  romance  and  of  jugglery.  There  were  several 
changes,  however,  in  the  style  and  fashion  of  the  ancient  romances,  in  propor- 
tion as  the  viilgar  tongue  underwent  its  successive  modifications,  and  it  would 
be  difficult  to  recognise  in  the  present  day  the  ancient  text  when  comparing 
it  with  the  new.  It  would  be  not  less  difficult  to  assign  a  fixed  date  to  the 
beginning  of  each  cycle,  all  of  which  started  from  the  primitive  cycle  of 
Charlemagne.  There  was  an  incessant  competition  between  the  jugglers, 
whose  audiences  were  always  clamouring  for  some  new  thing ;  and  it  was  to 
satisfy  this  demand  that  the  trouveurs  of  the  Oil  language  put  iuto  rhyme 
and  prose  the  old  Breton  lays,  and  increased  the  already  large  domain  of 
French  romance.  This  was  the  commencement  of  the  long  series  of  Breton 
romances,  otherwise  called  of  the  "  Round  Table,"  and  which  must  not  be 
confounded  with  the  chansons  ck  geste. 

M.  Paulin  Paris,  whose  oiDinions  on  these  matters  may  generally  be  relied 
upon,  holds  that  the  chevaliers  of  Flanders  and  the  Franche-Comte  had 
previously  to  this  gathered  from  the  conversation  of  Breton  jugglers,  or  from 
Latin  books  written  u^Don  the  authority  of  ancient  narratives,  the  traditions 
of  the  Celts  and  of  the  fabled  kings  of  Armorican  Brittany.  There  were,  for 
instance,  the  stories  of  Tristan,  son  of  a  King  of  Leon,  in  Little  Brittany,  who 
was  in  love  with  his  uncle's  wife ;  of  King  Mark,  under  the  fatal  influence  of 
a  philter  against  which  all  remedies  were  powerless ;  of  King  Arthur,  the 
Celtic  Hercules,  the  husband  of  Queen  Guinivere,  the  most  beautiful  and  the 
most  inconstant  of  women,  and  surroiuided  by  a  court  of  heroes  such  as 
Launcelot,  Gauvain,  Perceval,  Lionel,  Agravain,  &c.  For  some  time  already 
the  sham  combats  in  which  the  young  nobles  learnt  the  rude  art  of  war  were 
called  tournaments  {tournoi/s),  because  the  champions  turned  about  in  a  sort  of 
circular  arena,  while  endeavouring  to  hit  a  certain  mark,  a  movable  figm'e, 
or  a  quintain,  with  their  lance  or  their  sword.  The  authors  of  the  Breton 
romances  represented  King  Arthur  as  the  founder  of  chivalry  and  the  creator 
of  tournaments,  and  said  that  this  valorous  king  assembled  at  his  Round 
Table  the  twenty-four  bravest  chevaliers  of  his  kingdom,  who  thus  formed 
his  Supreme  Court  of  Chivalry.  These  old  Breton  romances,  in  which  the 
fair  sex  was  assigned  a  more  dignified  and  attractive  part  than  in  the  Carlo- 
vingian  romances,  were,  so  to  speak,  the  school  in  which  were  formed  the 
manners  of  chivalry,  and  which  favoured  the  development  of  refined  polite- 


ROMAA^CES. 


3«i 


ness.  The  sort  of  worshiij  paid  to  women  at  this  distant  epoch,  and  the 
delicate  attentions  lavished  iipon  them  by  the  opposite  sex,  conti-asted  very 
strongly  with  the  roughness  and  brutality  of  a  state  of  society  in  which  all 
misunderstandings  between  peoiDlc  of  noble  birth  were  washed  out  in  blood. 

A  succinct  analj'sis  of  "  Tristan  "  will  give  the  reader  a  better  idea  of  the 
characteristics  of  the  Breton  romance,  which,  according  to  certain  critics, 
dates  from  an  earlier  period  than  the  romances  of  the  Charlemagne  cycle. 


Fig.  309.— Tristan  at  the  Chase.— After  a  Miniature  from  the  "  Romance  of  Tristan."— JIanuscript 
of  the  Fifteenth  Century,  No.  7,174.— In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


The  principal  action  of  the  romance,  ■s\hich  is  the  first  in  order  of  chronology 
as  of  merit,  unfolds  itself  clearly,  and  in  a  way  to  enthral  the  reader's  atten- 
tion, around  three  personages,  whose  physiognomy  stands  out  in  distinct 
relief.  Mark,  King  of  Cornwall,  is  a  good  prince  and  a  miin  of  great  worth, 
the   beautiful    Ysolt    being    his    wife,   and    the    valiant    and    poetic^    Tristan 


382  ROMANCES. 


(Fig.  309)  his  nephew.  A  draught  which  the  two  latter  have  taken  without 
meaning  any  harm  deprives  them  of  the  power  of  obeying  the  voice  of 
honour  and  of  reason  ;  they  fall  violently  in  love,  and  the  irresistible  force  of 
the  enchantment  which  is  upon  them  serves  to  excuse  their  fault.  King 
Mark  passes  his  whole  time  in  watching  them,  in  detecting  them,  and  in 
forgiving  them.  One  day,  however,  his  anger  and  jealousy  are  too  much  for 
him  when  he  discovers  Tristan  in  the  Queen's  chamber  playing  the  harp  to 
her.  He  strikes  him  from  behind  with  a  jDoisoned  dart  (Fig.  310),  given 
him  by  the  fairy  Morgana,  but  he  is  suddenly  seized  with  terror,  and  retreats 
in  silence.  Tristan,  though  wounded,  displays  great  courage  in  bidding 
good-bye  to  Ysolt,  mounts  his  horse,  and  takes  refuge  with  his  friend  Dinas, 
who  receives  him  in  a  djdng  state.  The  poison  has  made  rapid  progress,  and 
Tristan,  notwithstanding  the  care  with  which  he  is  tended,  has  become 
almost  a  corpse.  His  friends  shed  tears  over  his  sad  state  day  and  night. 
The  only  signs  of  life  in  his  motionless  body  are  the  piercing  cries  which  he 
utters.  The  good  King  Mark  has  repented  him  of  his  cowardly  act  of 
vengeance,  and  regrets  having  surprised  his  nephew  and  wounded  him. 
Moreover,  the  unhappy  Ysolt  does  not  attempt  to  conceal  her  sorrow ;  and 
when  she  learns  that  her  dear  Tristan  is  dying,  she  openly  declares  that  she 
will  not  survive  him. 

Tristan  feels  that  his  last  hour  is  at  hand.  He  sends  for  his  imcle,  to  say 
that  he  should  like  to  see  him,  and  that  he  bears  him  no  ill-will  for  causing 
his  death.  King  Mark,  when  he  receives  this  message,  exclaims,  with  the 
tears  running  down  his  cheeks,  "  Alas,  alas !  Woe  to  me  for  having 
stabbed  my  nephew,  the  best  chevalier  in  the  whole  world  !  "  He  then 
repairs  to  Dinas's  castle,  where  Tristan,  whose  voice  was  very  faint,  said, 
"  This  is  my  last  fete  ;  the  one  you  have  so  eagerly  desired  to  see."  Tristan 
weeps,  and  the  King  sheds  even  more  abundant  tears,  but  consents  to  send 
for  Queen  Ysolt  at  his  nephew's  request.  Her  presence,  however,  fails  to 
revive  his  failing  forces,  and  she  exclaims,  "  Alas,  dear  friend  !  is  it  thus  you 

are  to  die  ?  "    Whereupon  he  says,  "  Yes,  my  lady  !  Tristan  must  die 

Look  at  my  arms  ;  they  are  no  longer  those  of  Tristan,  but  of  a  corpse " 

And  Ysolt  sobs  by  his  side,  praying  that  she  too  may  die. 

The  next  day  Tristan  half  opens  his  eyes,  and,  like  a  good  chevalier,  has 
his  sword  drawn  from  its  sheath  that  he  may  see  it  for  the  last  time.  "Alas, 
good  swoi'd  !  "  he  says,  "what  will  become  of  you  henceforward,  without 


ROMANCES. 


i^i 


your  trusty  lord  ?  I  now  take  leave  of  chivalry,  which  I  have  honoured  and 
loved ;  but  I  have  no  longer  anything  in  common  with  it.  Alas,  my  friends  ! 
to-day  Tristan  is  vanquished."  His  tears  begin  to  flow  afresh,  and  he  kisses 
his  sword,  which  he  bequeaths  to  his  dearest  companion  in  arms.  He  then 
turns  to  the  Queen,  who,  since  the  previous  day,  had  been  weeping  inces- 
santly, and  saj's  to  her,  "  My  very  dear  lady,  what  will  you  do  when  I 
die  ?     "Will  3'ou  not  die  with  me  ?  "     To  which  she  replies,  "  Gentle  friend, 


Fig.  310. — King  Mark  stabbing  Tristan  in  the  presence  of  Ysolt. — After  a  Miniature  in 
Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century,  No.  7,675. — In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


I  caU  God  to  witness  that  nothing  would  afford  me  so  much  joy  as  to  bear 
you  company  this  day.  Assuredly,  if  ever  woman  could  die  of  anguish  or 
sorrow,  I  should  have  died  several  times  since  I  have  been  by  your  side." 
"  And  you  would  like,  then,  to  die  with  me  ?  "  rejoined  Tristan.  "  God  knows* 
that  never  did  I  desire  anything  so  sincerely."  "  Approach  me,  then,  for  I 
feel  death  coming  upon  me,  and  I  should  like  to  breathe  my  last  in  your 


ROMANCES. 


arms."  Ysolt  leans  over  Tristan,  who  takes  her  into  his  wasted  arms,  and 
presses  her  so  tightly  that  her  heart  bursts,  and  he  expires  with  her,  thus 
mingling  their  last  sigh. 

The  description  of  the  beautiful  Ysolt,  as  Luce  du  Gault,  author  of  the 
prose  version  of  the  fourteenth  century,  makes  Tristan  himself  trace  it,  wiU 
complete  this  touching  story,  and  show  what  was  the  ideal  of  female  beauty 
at  this  period : — "  Her  beautiful  hair  shines  like  golden  threads ;  her  forehead 
is  whiter  than  the  lily  ;  her  eyebrows  are  arched  like  small  crossbows ;  and  a 
narrow  line,  milk-white,  dimples  her  nostrils.  Her  eyelids  are  brighter 
than  emeralds,  shining  in  her  forehead  like  two  stars.  Her  face  has  the 
beauty  of  morning,  for  it  is  both  white  and  vermilion,  each  colour  having 
its  due  proportion.  Her  lips  are  a  trifle  thick,  and  ardent  with  bright 
colour ;  her  teeth,  whiter  than  j)earls,  are  regirlar  and  of  good  size.  No 
spices  can  be  compared  to  the  sweet  breath  of  her  mouth.  The  chin  is 
smoother  than  marble.  From  her  stately  shoulders  sweep  two  thin  arms, 
and  long  hands,  the  flesh  of  which  is  tender  and  soft.  The  fingers  are  long 
and  straight,  and  her  nails  are  beautiful.  Her  waist  is  so  narrow  that  it  can 
be  spanned  with  the  two  hands."  There  is  nothing,  perhaps,  in  the  old 
French  language  so  graceful  and  picturesque  as  these  two  prose  romances  of 
"  Tristan  "  and  "  Launcelot  of  the  Lake." 

The  romance  of  "Launcelot"  appears  to  be  a  fresh  embodiment  of  the 
Armorican  legends  relating  to  Tristan.  Launcelot,  the  son  of  the  King  of 
Benoic  (Bom-ges),  and  nephew  of  the  King  of  Gannes,  falls  in  love  with 
Queen  Guinivere  (Fig.  311),  wife  of  King  Arthur,  and  he  deceives  the  latter 
in  as  great  good  faith  as  Tristan  had  deceived  King  Mark.  M.  Paulin  Paris 
points  out  that  there  is  a  mixture  in  these  two  romances  of  the  souvenirs  of 
ancient  Greek  and  of  Celtic  traditions.  Thus  King  Mark  has  many  points 
of  resemblance  with  King  Midas,  and  Tristan,  in  his  expedition  against  the 
Morhouet  of  Ireland,  is  no  other  than  Theseus,  who  slew  the  Minotaur  of 
Crete ;  while,  when  he  dies  reconciled  with  King  Mark,  the  black  veil 
attached  to  the  vessel  is  also  a  reminiscence  of  the  death  of  Theseus's  father. 
In  the  romance  of  "  Launcelot "  the  giant  who  asks  young  Laimcelot  riddles 
which  he  must  solve  under  jDenalty  of  death  is  an  imitation  of  the  Sphinx 
which  ffidipus  faced  ujDon  Mount  Cithgeron.  Laimcelot  at  the  com-t  of  the 
Lady  of  the  Lake  is  Achilles  at  the  court  of  the  King  of  Scyros,  and 
Guinivere,  the   wife  of   King   Arthur,    is   Dejanira,  who   proved    fatal  to 


ROMANCES. 


38s 


Hercules.     There  is  something  very  singular  in  this  invasion  of  the  ancient 
Greek  fables  into  the  books  of  the  Round  Table. 


Fig.  311.— Launcelot  and  Guinivcro.— After  a  Miniatun-  in  Manuarript,  of  the  Eleventh  Century, 
No.  6,961. — In  tlio  Xational  Library,  Paris. 


The  "Book  of  Mciliii  "  and   th<>  "Book  of   the  Grail,"  though  contem- 

3  i> 


386 


ROMANCES. 


porary  witli  "  Tristan  "  and  "  Launcelot,"  do  not  come  from  the  same  source, 
and  are  not  inspired  by  the  same  ideas.  In  "  Merlin  "  the  marvellous  forms 
by  far  the  largest  element,  and  the  author  seems  to  have  had  always  in  view 


Fig.  312.— The  Enchanter  Merlin,  transformed  into  a  Student,  meets  in  the  Forest  of  Broceliande 
the  Fairy  Viviana.— Fragment  of  the  Binding  of  a  Book  in  Enamelled  Metal- work  of  Limoges. 
— In  the  Museum  of  Antiquities  at  the  Louvre. 


the  Imitation  of  the  Bible.     The  book,  which  none  the  less  preserves  the 


ROMANCES. 


3«7 


purest  traditions  of  the  Gallo-Breton  legends,  opens,  like  the  Book  of  Job, 
with  a  council-meeting  held  in  the  infernal  regions  by  the  sjjirits  of  darkness. 
Satan  declares  that  he  cannot  hope  to  counterbalance  upon  earth  the  influence 
of  Christ,  unless  he  can  cause  to  be  born  of  an  immacvilate  virgin  a  man- 
demon.  This  man-demon  is  Merlin,  who  takes  under  his  protection  King 
Arthur,  and  who,  after  having  rendered  him  great  services,  is  buried  alive  in 


Fig.  313. — Death    of  Joseph   of  Arimathca. — After  a  Miniature   from    the    "History  of  Saint 
Grail." — Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


a  stone  tomb  by  the  Lady  of  the  Lake,  who  has  inherited  some  of  his  super- 
natural power  (Fig.  312). 

The  "  Book  of  the  Grail  "  is  an  evocation  of  <hc  old  religious  legends  of 
Brittany.  According  to  a  pretended  gospel,  attributed  to  St.  Joseph  of 
Arimathea,  the  latter  was  said  to  have  been  the  original  possesisor  of  the 


ROMANCES. 


"grail"  (Fig.  313),  a  sacred  vessel  in  which  the  blood  of  Jesus,  when  He 
died  upon  the  cross,  was  received  hj  the  angels.  This  vessel,  after  having 
passed  into  the  possession  of  Joseph's  son  and  of  his  descendants,  remained 
concealed  for  several  centuries,  when  King  Arthur  and  his  chevaliers  set  out 
in  quest  of  it,  and  the  honour  of  its  discovery  fell  upon  Perceval,  the  Gaul, 
who  found  it  at  the  court  of  the  King  Pecheur.  The  author  of  this  curious 
romance,  composed  in  the  beginning  of  the  thirteenth  century,  was  the 
trouveur,  Robert  de  Borron,  who,  in  the  opinion  of  several  critics,  was 
assisted  by  Gautier  Map,  chaplain  to  King  Henry  II.  of  England. 

The  complement  to  the  romances  of  the  Round  Table  was  the  book  which 
is  known  as  the  "Death  of  Arthur,"  as  "  Bret,"  and  as  the  "  Quest  of  the 
Holy  Grail,"  and  it  is  the  least  felicitous  of  them  all.  It  was  written  by 
several  authors,  whose  one  object  was  to  bring  into  it  all  the  knights  of  the 
Round  Table — Perceval,  Lionel,  Hector,  Palamede,  Gauvain,  Bliomberis, 
Mordrain,  and  others,  and  to  represent  them  as  engaged  in  unceasing  battle 
with  wild  beasts,  giants,  and  enchanters.  It  was  not  till  the  fifteenth 
century  that  the  romance-writers  lengthened  the  stories  contained  in  the 
books  of  the  Round  Table  by  describing  the  adventures  and  deeds  of  daring 
of  Little  Tristan,  of  Meliadus,  of  Perceforest,  of  Constant,  of  Little  Arthur, 
of  Isaiah  the  Doleful,  &c. 

The  fourteenth  century  ushered  in  the  decadence  of  the  romances  of 
chivalry.  At  the  end  of  the  previous  century  an  effort  had  been  made  to 
revive  the  popularity  of  these  romances,  which  had  been  more  than  once 
revised  and  altered  from  their  original  composition,  the  cj'cle  of  Charlemagne 
and  even  that  of  the  Round  Table  being  no  longer  in  vogue.  Still  less 
success  attended  the  provincial  cycles,  as  the  Gestes  relating  thereto  were  only 
of  interest  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  province  in  which  the  events  described 
took  place.  Thus  the  graphic  "  Geste  des  Lorrains,"  comprising  "  Hervis  de 
Metz,"  "Garin  le  Loherain,"  and  "  Girbert  et  Anseis ; "  the  "Burgundian 
Geste,"  consisting  of  the  two  romances,  "  Girart  de  RoussiUon"  and  "Aubri 
le  Bourgoing  ;  "  and  other  equally  ancient  Gestes,  such  as  "  Amis  et  Amiles," 
"Jourdain  de  Blaives,"  "Aiol  et  Mirabel,"  "Raoul  de  Cambrai,"  &c.,  no 
longer  excited  the  enthusiasm  of  the  hearers,  who  were  out  of  patience  witli 
the  jugglers,  and  did  not  care  to  receive  them  into  their  houses  on  account  of 
their  bad  reputation.  This  bad  reputation  Avas  in  a  great  measure  due  to  the 
misconduct  of  their  confreres,  the  singers  and  the  storv-tellers,  and  though 


RO^fAXCES. 


389 


most  of  the  jugglers  themselves  led  respectable  lives,  their  contact  with  the 
latter,  who  were  nearh'  all  thieves  and  dnmkards,  told  verv  much  against 
them.  This,  beyond  all  doubt,  was  one  of  the  causes  which  brought  about  the 
decadence  of  romance  as  a  branch  of  literature. 

The  last  features  of  importance  in  this  branch  of  literature  were  the  cycle 
of  the  Crusades  and  a  few  romances  which  appealed  more  especially  to  the 
pride  of  certain  noble  families  which  had  been  made  famous  by  the  wars 


Fig.  314 — The  Arming  of  a  Knight  after  the  Ceremonial  instituted  hy  King  Arthur. — Fac-simile 
of  a  Miniature  from  Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — In  the  Burgundy  Librarj*, 
BriiBsela. 


beyond  the  seas.  These  romances,  "Ilelias,"  the  "  Enfaiice.s  Godefroi,"  the 
"Chetifs,"  and  "  Antioch  and  Jerusalem"  (the  latter  two  being  merely 
extracts  from  the  same  i^oem),  were  recited  in  all  the  chateaux  of  Fi'ance  ;  and 
•the  jugglers,  proud  of  having  won  a  fresh  pojtularity,  thought  they  could 
dispense  with  a  musical  accompaniment,  and   got   rid  of    their  instrument- 


39°  ROMANCES. 


players.  The  result  was  that  the  romances,  being  no  longer  sung  to  the 
accompaniment  of  the  harp  or  the  violin,  but  recited  in  a  monotonous  tone, 
became  submerged  in  a  mass  of  marvellous  and  improbable  stories,  and  were 
drawn  out  to  a  wearisome  length.  Not  only  were  new  compositions  with 
thirty  or  forty  thousand  Alexandrine  lines  brought  out,  but  the  ancient 
romances  written  in  ten-sj'llable  verse  were  recast,  and  the  lines  lengthened. 
The  primitive  work,  thus  disfigured,  lost  all  its  original  qualities.  The 
trouveurs  who  were  writing  for  the  jugglers  succeeded,  however,  in  opening 
a  fresh  cycle,  which  belongs  at  once  to  the  history  of  Charlemagne's  successors 
and  to  that  of  the  Crusades.  The  romances  of  "  Charles  the  Bald "  and  of 
"Hugues  Capet  "  were  not  more  vokiminous  than  the  ancient  romances,  but 
"  Baudouin  de  Sebourc  "  had  more  than  thirty  thousand  lines,  and  "  Tristan  de 
Nanteuil"  twenty-four  thousand.  The  "Lion  de  Bourges,"  which  consists 
of  forty  thousand  tame  and  prolix  lines,  is  a  riot  of  the  imagination  in  which 
there  is  no  trace  of  the  traditions  relating  to  Charlemagne's  epoch,  which 
the  writer  professed  to  portray  for  the  last  time. 

This  was  the  death-blow  to  the  jugglers,  for  they  could  not  find  any  one  to 
listen  to  the  recital  of  these  interminable  romances.  ^Nevertheless,  as  many 
of  them  tiu'ned  copyists  in  order  to  gain  a  livelihood,  the  manuscripts  went 
on  increasing,  and  the  longest  and  dullest  of  romances  still  found  readers. 
But  though  the  reading  of  romances  increased  rather  than  diminished 
amongst  the  wealthy  and  noble  classes,  with  whom  the  taste  for  tourna- 
ments, jousts,  and  other  games  and  institutions  appertaining  to  chivalry 
(Fig.  314)  grew  very  rapidly,  only  prose  romances  found  any  favour.  The 
rhymed  romances  were  condemned  as  a  nuisance,  and  the  consequence  was  a 
rapid  transformation  of  them  into  pro.se.  There  was  no  lack  of  scribes  in  the 
palaces  of  the  kings,  as  in  the  castles  of  the  nobility,  to  undertake  this  work, 
and  the  anonjonous  author  of  the  translation  of  "Aimeri  de  Beaulande"  gives 
as  his  reason  for  having  undertaken  the  work  that  it  suits  the  popidar  taste. 
In  the  preface  to  the  prose  version  of  "  Anseis  de  Carthage  "  the  adeur,  as  he 
was  called,  openly  states  that  he  felt  great  hesitation  and  mistrust  of  his  own 
person  in  transposing  from  rhyme  into  prose,  "  according  to  the  tastes  of  the 
day,"  the  achievements  of  ancient  chivalry. 

The  old  romances  in  verse  disappeared  and  fell  into  oblivion,  but  the  prose 
versions,  arranged  according  to  the  tastes  of  the  day,  tricked  out  with  senti- 
mental and  pedantic  digressions,  and  lengthened  with  a  mass  of  descriptions 


ROMANCES. 


39> 


and  dialogues,  were  twice  as  prolix,  but  were  received  with  great  favour. 
Many  copies  of  them  were  brought  out,  and  some  of  these  copies,  written  in 
large  letters  upon  costly  vellum  (Fig.  315),  were  ornamented  with  capitals  in 
gold  and  colours,  and  with  artistically  painted  miniatures.  The  libraries  of  the 
great  houses  wore  made  up  of  these  manuscripts,  most  of  them  in  folio,  bound 


Fig.  315. — Copyist  writing  upon  a  Sheet  of  Vellum. — Miniature  from  Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth 
Century. — In  the  Koyal  Library,  Brussels. 


in  wood,  with  a  covering  of  leather  or  some  rich  material.  These  enormous 
volumes,  which  could  only  be  read  from  a  desk,  were  much  used  by  the  ladies 
of  the  family,  who,  undismayed  by  the  length  to  which  these  stories  of  love 
and  chivalry  extended,  read  from  them  every  day.  This  was  a  veiy  favour- 
able period  for  the  romances ;  nor  was  it  the  last,  for,  when  printing  was 
discovered,  fresh  editions  of  nearly  all  the  romances  made  their  appearance 


392  ROMANCES. 


(Fig.  317).  The  text  was  much  abridged  in  these  later  editions,  and  certain 
compilers,  such  as  Pierre  Desrey  de  Troyes,  obtained  for  themselves  a  great 
reputation  for  this  work,  which  exacted  patience  rather  than  genius.  The 
romances  thus  re^ased  had  a  great  manj^  new  readers,  especiallj^  among  the 
middle  classes,  who  had  not  before  been  able  to  see  them.  Chivalry,  during 
the  reigns  of  Charles  VIII.,  of  Louis  XII.,  and  of  Francois  I.,  seemed  to 
shine  with  renewed  brightness  previously  to  its  final  extinction,  and  the 
romances  which  had  heralded  its  triumph  seemed,  so  to  speak,  to  reflect  its 
last  rays. 

During  the  reign  of  Charles  VII.,  and  more  especially  at  the  court  of 
Burgundy,  writers  of  real  merit  and  discernment  endeavoured  to  create  a  new 
kind  of  romantic  literature,  appealing  to  persons  of  more  refined  and  elevated 
tastes  (Fig.  316).  They  wrote  love-stories  or  satires  which  were  not  less 
remarkable  for  the  grace  and  interest  of  the  narrative  than  for  the  realism  of 
the  passions  and  sentiments  depicted.  These  romances,  put  together  in  a  verj^ 
plain  but  ingenious  manner,  were  in  as  great  favour  as  the  more  ambitious 
comjDilations  relating  to  chivalry  which  it  took  two  or  three  months  to  read. 
Antoine  de  la  Sale  furnished  the  model  for  works  of  this  kind  with  his 
"  Histoire  et  Chronique  du  Petit  Jehan  de  Saintre,"  which  was  followed  by 
the  histories  of  "  Parise  et  Vianne  sa  mie,"  of  the  "  Chevaleiireux  Comte 
d'Artois,"  of  "Ferrant  de  Flandres,"  of  "Baudoin  d'Avesnes,"  of  "Pierre 
de  Provence,"  of  "Jean  de  Calais,"  and  of  "Jean  de  Paris."  It  began  to  be 
understood  that  the  romance,  discarding  the  marvellous  and  fantastic  elements, 
might  possess  the  most  varied  characteristics  and  become  didactic,  like  the  book 
of  the  "  Sept  Sages  "  and  the  "  Cite  des  Dames  ;  "  sententious  and  instructive, 
like  the  "Jouvencel,"  by  Admiral  Jean  de  Bueil;  or  satirical,  like  King 
Rene's  "Abuse  en  Cour."  Romance  became  satirical  and  philosojjhical  with 
Rabelais,  who  at  first,  when  he  wrote  "  Gargantua,"  intended  to  satirize  the 
romances  of  chivalry,  and  who  continued  in  "Pantagruel"  to  criticize  the 
customs  of  his  own  time.  Nevertheless,  the  romances  of  chivalry  continued 
to  be  in  vogue  until  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century  ;  but  after  that  the 
modern  romance,  which  is  now  onlj^  I'epresented  by  a  few  insipid  works,  such 
as  the  "Histoire  de  I'Escuyer  Gyrard  et  de  Damoiselle  Alyson,"  the  "Amant 
ressuscite  de  la  Mort  d' Amour,"  the  "Amours  de  la  belle  Luce,"  &c.,  trans- 
formed itself  into  the  Conte,  or  tale,  after  the  fashion  of  the  "Cent 
Nouvelles  nouvelles."     The  "  Heptameron  "  of  the  Queen  of  Navarre  gave 


ROMANCES. 


393 


birtli  to  the  "  Recreations  et  Joj'eux  Devis  "  of  BonaTenture  des  Periers ;  to 
the  "  Discours  d'Eutrapel ; "  to  the  "  Matinees  "  and  to  the  "  Apres-dinees  "  of 
Cholieres  ;  and,  lastly,  to  the  "  Soirees,"  by  Guillaume  Bouchet. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  ancient  romances  of  chivalrj^  all  originating  in 


Fig.  316. — "  How  the  Actor  lost  his  way,  and  arrived  in  front  of  the  Palace  of  Love,  into  which 
Desire  hid  him  enter,  while  Remembrance  held  him  back." — lliniature  from  the  "  Chevalier 
Delibere,"  by  Olivier  de  la  Marche. — Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Centurj-,  No.  173. — In  the 
Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


France  and  bearing  upon  them  the  impress  of  that  origin,  had  been  trans- 
lated or  adapted  into  every  language  since  the  thirteenth  century.  Not  only 
in  Germany,  Holland,  and  England,  but  in  Sweden,  Denmark,  and  even  in 

3  E 


39+  ROMANCES. 


Iceland.  These  translations  and  imitations,  which  preserved  the  generic 
name  of  romance,  were,  however,  fashioned  to  suit  the  taste  of  the  nation  for 
which  they  were  intended,  though  they  still  retained  the  characteristics  of 
their  place  of  birth.  In  Italy  there  was  composed  only  one  prose  romance 
after  the  manner  of  the  French  romances  of  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth 
centuries ;  but  from  this  crude  compilation,  which  was  called  "  Reali  di 
Francia,"  there  issued  a  great  number  of  long  poems  on  chivalry — "  Hiaaldo," 
"Morgante,"  "Orlando,"  "Guarino,"  &c. — upon  which  the  Italian  genius 
lavished  all  the  wealth  of  its  poetry  to  disguise  the  extravagant  and  affected 
sentiments  which  it  attributed  somewhat  too  freely  to  the  rude  paladins  of 
Charlemagne,  and  to  the  Christian  warriors  who  took  part  in  the  Crusades. 
Spain,  whose  heroic  traditions  were  carefully  preserved  in  the  romances  of 
the  Campeador  Cid,  showed  little  liking  for  the  peers  of  Charlemagne ;  but 
she  took  more  kindly  to  the  Breton  romances  about  the  Knights  of  the  Round 
Table,  and  from  them  derived  her  inspirations  for  the  composition  of  a 
romance  similar  in  characteristics,  which  soon  obtained  a  reputation  equal  to, 
if  not  greater  than,  that  of  the  French  works.  This  romance,  "  Amadis  de 
Gaule,"  which  Portugal  has  always  claimed  the  possession  of  from  Spain, 
was  composed,  or  at  all  events  begun,  in  the  first  j^ears  of  the  sixteenth  century 
by  an  anonymous  author,  who  wrote  only  the  first  four  books  of  it.  The 
writers  who  took  up  the  work  where  he  left  it,  and  whose  names  are  also 
unknown,  added  to  these  four  books  the  stories  of  Esplandian,  of  Florisande, 
of  Catane,  and  of  the  Knight  of  the  Burning  Sword.  The  success  of 
"  Amadis  "  was  even  greater  in  France  and  Italy  than  it  was  in  Spain,  and 
the  French  translation  of  Nicholas  de  Herberay,  Sieur  des  Essars,  shone  like 
a  beacon  light  above  all  the  romantic  compositions  of  the  sixteenth  century, 
during  which  the  Spaniards  published  many  romances  of  chivalry — "Primaleon 
of  Greece,"  "  Gerileon  of  England,"  &c. — all  of  which  were  cast  into  the  shade 
by  the  masterpiece  of  Cervantes.  The  English  and  the  Dutch  contiaued  to 
read  the  translations  of  the  old  French  romances,  but  they  did  not  attempt 
to  imitate  them,  and  the  first  national  romance  in  England  was  Sidney's 
"  Arcadia,"  published  in  1591,  and  continued  by  his  sister,  the  Countess  of 
Pembroke.  The  Germanic  nations,  which  had  also  translated  a  great  number 
of  the  old  French  romances,  were  even  less  successful  than  the  English 
in  this  branch  of  literature,  and  the  few  national  and  historical  romances 
which  thej^  published  in  the  sixteenth  century  only  served  to  manifest  their 


ROMANCES. 


395 


inferiority.  Their  tendencj'  was  rather  towards  the  invention  of  stories  at  once 
supernatural  and  facetious,  such  as  "  Fortunatus,"  "  Ulespiegel,"  and  "  Faust," 
or  satirical  allegories,  such  as  the  famous  romance  of  "  Renard,"  to  which 
France  gave  letters  of  naturalisation,  borrowing  from  Germany  the  data  of 
this  fanciful  and  allegorical  story. 


DO^WiffllMMEW 


BH319WAHOTA3HH)HiHyS 


Fig.  317.— Token  of  Antoiiie  Verard  (1498),  rrinter,  Wood  Kngraver,  and  Bookseller,  at  Tans, 
who  published  most  of  the  Romances  of  Chivalry  in  Prose  during  the  reigna  of  Louis  XII. 
and  Francois  I. 


POPULAR   SONGS. 


Definition  and  Classification  of  Popular  Song. — Songs  of  the  Germans,  the  Gauls,  the  Goths,  and 
the  Franks. — They  are  collected  by  Order  of  Charlemagne. — Vestiges  of  the  most  Ancient 
Songs. — The  Historical  Songs  of  France  down  to  the  Sixteenth  Century. — Romanesque  Songs. 
— Religious  Songs. — The  Christmas  Carols  and  the  Canticles. — Legendary  Songs. — Domestic 
Songs.— The  Music  of  the  Popular  Songs. — Provincial  Songs. — The  Songs  of  Germany. — The 
Minnesingers  and  the  Meistersingers. — The  Songs  of  England,  of  Scotland,  and  of  Northern 
Countries. — The  Songs  of  Greece,  of  Italy,  and  of  Spain. 

Y  the  ■n'oi'ds  Popular  Song  we  mean  a  sort  of 
l^oetry  born  spontaneously  amongst  the  people, 
and  therefore  anonymous,  and  which,  instead 
of  being  ascribed  to  such  and  such  a  poet,  is, 
on  the  contrarj^,  the  work  of  certain  unknown 
authors.  We  may  also  look  upon  it  as  the 
collective  and  successive  work  of  whole  genera- 
tions, which,  by  the  adojation  of  this  poetry  set 
to  music  in  which  is  reflected  the  f  eeHng  of  the 
mas.s,  have  preserved  it  more  or  less  intact  as  a 
traditional  souvenir  of  early  ages.  Montaigne 
characterized,  with  sticking  truth,  this  kind  of  popular  poetry,  which  is 
contemporary  with  the  origin  of  nations  and  of  languages,  when  he  said, 
"  Poetry  which  is  pojjular  and  wholly  natural  possesses  charms  of  simplicity 
and  grace  which  are  worthy  to  be  compared  with  the  highest  of  artificial 
beauties,  as  may  be  seen  by  the  pastoral  poetry  {vUlanelles)  of  Gascony  and  the 
songs  coming  to  us  from  foreign  parts." 

M.  Eugene  Fermin,  the  commentator  of  the  "  Burgundy  Christmas 
Carols  "  of  La  Monnoj^e,  says,  "  Every  nation  possesses  its  popular  songs ; 
and  as  with  all  of  them  these  songs  must  have  had  their  origin  in  analogous 
causes,  it  follows  that  these  songs  must  possess  a  certain  analogy  with  each 
other.     They  were  always  inspired  either  by  public  occurrences,  or  by  religious 


POPULAR  SONGS. 


397 


feeling,  or  by  domestic  joys  and  sorrows,  whence  we  have  the  three  distinct 
and  marked  categories  which  comprise  the  historic  songs,  the  religious  songs, 
and  the  domestic  songs." 


^ — ^   S^^ 

Fig.  318. — Poetry  and  Music. — The  Nine  lluses  inspiring  Arion,  Orpheus,  and  Pythagoras,  under 
the  auspices  of  the  Personified  Air,  source  of  all  Harmony. — Miniature  from  the  "  Liber 
Pontificalia." — Manuscript  of  the  Thirteenth  Century. — In  the  Public  Library,  Rheims. 


All  nations  have  had  their  singers,  and  the  national  songs,  composed  of 
rhymed  words  with  which  corresponded  a  musical  melody  that  had  not  the  same 


398 


POPULAR  SONGS. 


principles  of  duration,  were  tlie  primitive  expression  of  tlae  passions,  tlie 
beliefs,  and  the  ideas  of  eacli  great  human  family  (Fig.  318).  It  is  easy  to 
understand  how  most  of  these  popidar  songs  were  lost  as  time  rolled  on,  and 
why  only  a  few  faint  echoes  of  them  are  now  preserved,  for  the  very  essence 
of  a  pojDular  song  is  that  it  receives  no  written  publicity,  but  passes  from 
mouth  to  mouth,  leaving  no  other  trace  than  verbal  reminiscences.  The 
early  peoi^les  were  not  in  the  habit    of   writing.       "The   Germans,"  says 


Allegro. 

Da  ikmabg\vennDrouiz,o-re;     Da-ik   pe-lia    felld'id-de.'     pe-lra  ga-ninn- 


f^^y^bZ 


^- b-h— «—  -^--*-«-»-  -b— h— l-h— U-h-a-l— ^ 


rt^=b=tb= 


med'id-de.^ — Kan  d'ineuz  a   -   eur  rami,     Kou     a  ouf-eiin       bre-man. 


—  Heb      rann     ar  Red        beb-kcn  :  Aa  -  Kou ,  lad  ann         an  -  ken ;  Ne  - 


?=35E^i^iE^-:-=?j 


rj=a: 


-A-t~t-t 


^^ bl^-t^-^-l^- 


=illElL 


tia     kentne       Ira  ken.    —    Da-ikinabgwenn  Drouiz,o  -  re;      Da-ik    pe-tra 


-^^f- 


felld'id-de.'        pe-tra  ga-ninn  -  nie  did -de?  —  Kan  d'in  euz  a       zaou  rann, 


Ken    a    ouf-cnn        bre-man. 

Fig.  319. — A  Song  of  the  Druidic  Epoch,  Words  and  Music.     Translated  by  Fetis  in  his 
"  General  History  of  Music." 


Tacitus,  "  possessed  some  very  ancient  poems,  in  which  were  celebrated  the 
warlike  actions  and  noble  deeds  of  their  ancestors,  and  which  were  transmitted 
from  father  to  son  as  the  only  annals  of  their  race."  Among  the  Gauls  the 
Druids  preserved  as  a  sacred  deposit  the  religious  poems  which  dated  from 
the  very  earliest  times,  and  which  contained  the  mysteries  of  their  religion 
(Fig.  319),  and  these  religious  poems  were  in  no  case  committed  to  writing. 


POPULAR   SONGS.  399 


At  a  later  period,  according  to  the  testimony  of  Jornandes,  the  great  Germanic 
nation  of  the  Goths  possessed  no  other  history  than  the  ancient  songs  which 
had  been  preserved  as  a  venerabk^  tradition  in  the  well-stored  memory  of  the 
people  ("  qiiemadmodum  et  in  priscis  coram  carminibus  pene  historico  ritu  in 
cominime  recolitur").  Thus  Boulainvilliers  remarks  with  truth,  in  his 
"  Essay  upon  the  Nobility,"  "  The  history  of  the  French  is  stored  up  in  their 
historical  songs." 

Unfortunately  there  does  not  now  exist  a  single  one  of  these  songs,  which 
the  Gallic  bards,  according  to  Diodorus  Siculus  and  Ammianus  Marcellinus, 
were  set  to  compose  in  Celtic,  in  order  to  perpetuate  the  memorj^  of  heroic 
deeds,  and  which  they  sang  themselves  at  their  assemblies  to  the  accompani- 
ment of  the  harp  or  the  h're.  (See  the  volume  on  "  The  Arts,"  chapter  Mmk.) 
We  possess  nothing  of  an  earlier  date  than  the  Latin  translation  of  the  first 
verses  of  a  popular  song  composed  in  622,  after  the  victory  won  by  King 
Clotaire  II.  over  the  Saxons.  This  song  went  from  mouth  to  mouth,  because 
it  was  in  the  rustic  language  {Jurta  riisficifcifcin),  and  it  was  repeated  by  the 
women,  who  sang  it  while  dancing  and  clapping  their  hands.  The  popular 
historical  songs  became  verj'  numerous  in  Gaul  and  in  Germany,  but  many  of 
them  had  disappeared  when  Charlemagne,  who  held  this  ancient  literature 
of  the  people  in  high  esteem,  had  them  carefully  collected  in  all  the  countries 
under  his  dominion,  and  it  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  this  valuable  compila- 
tion, which  testified  to  Charlemagne's  esteem  for  this  kind  of  ^-ulgar  poetry, 
should  have  been  lost.  Eginhard  mentions  in  this  connection  that  Charle- 
magne often  sought  relief  from  the  cares  of  state  in  the  songs  of  some  Breton 
bard  or  some  Scandinavian  scald.  Upon  one  occasion  he  allowed  a  Lombard 
juggler  {Joculator)  to  execute  before  him  and  his  court  a  cantiioicii/a  f.yh'wh 
that  minstrel  had  composed.  There  existed,  no  doubt,  some  very  popular  and 
famous  songs  of  the  kind  in  honour  of  Charlemagne,  for  in  the  tenth  century 
the  words  were  still  sung  in  the  Gennan  language  to  the  old  tune,  which  is 
described  in  a  manuscript  at  "Wolfenbuttel  as  ^loi/iis  rarrhtiainiiiic  (Charle- 
magne's tune). 

From  the  ninth  to  the  twelfth  century  we  can  only  cite  eight  or  ten 
popular  songs,  most  of  which  were  written  in  Latin,  and  which  were,  there- 
fore, the  work  of  clerks  or  men  of  letters,  viz.  a  lament  on  the  death  of 
Charlemagne  ("  Planctus  Caroli  ")  ;  a  very  beautiful  song  upon  the  battle  of 
Fontanet,  in  841,  by  Angilbcrt  the  Frank  ;  a  song  upon  the  death  of  Eric, 


400 


POPULAR  SONGS. 


Duke  of  Frioul,  in  799,  by  Paulin,  Patriarch  of  Alexandria ;  a  song  to 
celebrate  the  victory  of  the  Emperor  Otho  III.  over  the  Hungarians ;  a  song 
upon  the  death  of  Abbot  Hug,  the  natural  son  of  Charlemagne.  But  it  is 
doubtful  how  far  these  songs  were  really  popular,  and  the  "  Ludwigslied "  is 
the  only  song  of  that  period  which  we  know  to  have  been  unmistakably 
so.  This  song  is  in  German,  and  celebrates  the  great  victory  won  by 
Louis  III.  in  881  over  the  Normans,  and  it  was  sung  in  the  North  of  France 
as  late  as  the  twelfth  century. 

The  songs  in  the  Romance  rustic  language  were  the  only  ones  generally 


-3z 


^-=\- 
''-d- 


O    Ma-ri 


a.    Deu  mai      -      re,      Deu  tes   e         fils    e  pai    -    re; 


P'— i;-<i-a-#-i-ji'— j— « t—*r 


is^m 


Domoa 


pre 


la     per  nos 


a- 

fil  -  lo       glo  -  ri   -  OS. 


^=3ilpg^pii^il^i3i|N 


pair      ais  -  sa-meii; 


pre  -  la   per 


to-ta 


^Pir^=3^ipflii^gill-i^ 


e    eel     -     ro      nos    so-cor; 


tor  -  na  nos        es  a 


Fig.  320. — Song  of  tlie  Crusaders,  dating  from  tie  First  Crusade  (1096),  and  set  to  Modem  Music 
by  Fetis  in  hia  "  General  History  of  Music." 


current  among  the  people  at  a  time  when  the  German  language  was  only 
used  at  the  court  of  the  Carlovingian  kings  and  emperors,  and  when  the 
clerks  used  the  Latin  langviage  almost  exclusively  in  the  monasteries  and  ia 
the  schools.  A  great  nimiber  of  these  songs  were  devoted  to  the  marvellous 
and  historical  incidents  in  the  legend  of  Charlemagne,  and  they  served  for 
the  composition  of  the  early  chansons  de  geste  and  romances  of  chivalry,  m 
which  they  were  gradually  absorbed  and  lost  (Fig.  320).  It  is,  therefore, 
impossible  to  advance  any  direct  and  certain  proof  as  to  the  existence  of  these 
primitive  songs.     (See  above,  chapter  on  Romances.) 

There  are  no  traces  of  historical  songs  in  the  vulgar  tongue  of  France 


POPULAR  SONGS. 


401 


earlier  tliaii  the  thirteenth  century,  but  there  may  be  instanced  a  very  singular 
Latin  song  relating  to  the  story  of  Abelard,  and  composed  by  his  jnipil  Ililaire 


Fig.  321. — Duko  Philip  1ho  Good,  being  sick,  intrivsts  the  education  of  hia  son  Charles,  Corale  de 
Charolois,  to  Georges  Chairtelain,  the  Poet  and  Chronicler.— Miniature  from  the  "  In.struclion 
d'un  jcune  Prince." — Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Centnry,  executed  by  the  Painters  of  the 
Court  of  Burgundy. — In  the  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


about  1122,  when  his  illustrious  master,  condemned  by  the  Touncil  of  Soissons 

a  F 


402  POPULAR  SONGS. 


for  His  bold  views  on  philosopliy,  finally  gave  up  tuition.    This  song  is  divided 
into  rh'STned  verses  of  four  lines  each,  with  the  following  refrain  in  French : — 

"  Tort  a  vers  nos  li  mestre." 

Seventy-seven  years  later,  at  the  death  of  Richard  CoBur  de  Lion,  who  was 
killed  while  besieging  the  Castle  of  Chains,  in  the  j^rovince  of  Limousin,  the 
French  jugglers  remembered  that  the  valiant  King  of  England  had  been 
delivered  from  prison  by  the  aid  of  his  minstrel,  Blondel  of  Nesles,  who  made 
himself  known  by  singing  an  air  which  Richard  had  comjjosed  himself.  A 
popular  song,  in  the  style  of  the  chansons  de  geste,  was  therefore  composed 
about  the  death  of  Richard,  and  soon  became  popular  throughout  France,  and 
doubtless  in  England  as  well.     Amongst  other  lines  were  the  following : — 

"  Et  (;o  dont  dei  tos  jors  pleindre  en  plorant, 

M'avient  a  dire  en  chantant  et  relraire 

Que  oil  qui  est  de  valur  chief  et  paire 
Li  tres-valens  Richarz,  rois  des  Engleis,  est  morz.   .  .  . 

Morz  est  li  rois,  et  sunt  passe  mil  ans 
Que  tant  prodom  ne  fust  ne  n'est  de  son  semblant." 

The  historical  songs  from  the  thirteenth  to  the  sixteenth  century  recall 
such  events  as  the  Crusades,  the  wars  of  the  French  and  the  English,  the 
death  of  the  Constable  Bertrand  Duguesclin,  and  other  popular  heroes.  Le 
Roux  de  Lincy  has  published  an  interesting  collection  of  historical  and 
popular  French  songs  from  the  tweKth  to  the  eighteenth  century,  and  a 
second,  comprising  those  of  the  time  of  Charles  VII.  and  Louis  XL,  and  in 
these  two  collections  are  to  be  found  all  that  remains  of  these  songs,  most  of 
which  have  lapsed  into  oblivion.  It  is  very  strange  that  none  of  the  numerous 
ballads  which  the  miraculous  mission  of  Joan  of  Arc  evoked  at  the  time  should 
have  been  treasured  up,  while  there  is  still  extant  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Tournay  a  long  ballad  upon  the  death  of  Philip,  the  good  Duke  of  Burgundy 
(Fig.  321).  Although  this  ballad  dates  from  1467,  it  does  not  differ  much 
from  the  language  of  the  present  day,  as  may  be  gathered  from  the  extract 
appended : — 

"1,6  Lon  due,  avant  son  trespas, 
Et  sentaiit  la  mort  pres  de  luy, 
Tout  bellement  et  par  compas, 
Fist  ses  legres  en  grant  annuy  : 


rcr 


'u  nrn  Jt  ^icii  ^l  2nt  ce  me  fjit  vcconfoifc 

k  ccdtDur  <'  nw  5lU(j-nit'iviit  ^u<Uu\r 

qtunu*  h)mfl:  iQl  u  ccHc  clbuc  cutcubid'c 
^in  ^rk  boucour  ^  a  niiicr  loiittTj>\ti|Tc 

lOllcCamcs  li  .ij[,  iames  man  luiUiit  la  ftour 
puifPoits"  rmbu'    ^   e  fcuf  ^'  buiutc   be  vcllour 
Wixwi  arimcucr     1  eur  \icii$  tie  viieil  cii  ai't  bii-e 
eut'ca^n:  4^  ai*leur^airaim  ^  ^^nl^  Icuruv 

J  c qui  fif  bo(jvcr  Ic  baxtoi$  j^  i cjvu  bicu.fai  ijiunc  mc4i*oi^ 

^  cb  bfrtaui  qm  lit  ou  Imii  w)   e  5iu'l  Ic  fflit  uc  6itr  vluou 
f  ^  I'ucucti  tc  antmatvbis*  R  imf  fo:rlciir  ^latftr  i  iem-  gw 

(l  I  Ml  Autre  Uurc  tintvpris  p  ovxcc  (crottt  UiivwMt  nomc 


ADENEZ,   THE   KING  OF  THE   MINSTRELS. 

Sent  by  Henry,  duke  of  Flanders  and  Brabant,  to  Robert,  Count  d'Artois,  brother  of  King  Louis  IX,  recites 
thefloman  dc  Clcomadi'^  in  presence  of  tlie  Countess  d'Artoi.-!,  Mathilde  de  Brabant  and  Blanche  of  Cas- 
tile, Queen  of  France.  Miniature  from  a  M.S.  of  the  xiii'"  century.  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


POPULAR   SUXGS.  403 


'  L:)S  ! '  dit-il,  '  je  laisse  aujourd'hui 
JIa  chiere  espouse  enior  vivant. 
Adieu,  ma  dame  a  qui  je  suy  ! 
Plies  pour  moy,  je  vojs  moi;tnt.'  " 

The  importance  of  a  pojnilar  song  was  not,  moreover,  ahvays  to  be  judged 
by  that  of  the  event  which  gave  it  birth.  It  often  hapjiened  that  great 
political  and  national  questions  inspired  onl}'  a  few  insignificant  rhymes, 
which  lapsed  into  oblivion  without  evoking  the  sj'mpathies  of  the  masses, 
while  a  tournament,  a  plenary  court,  a  jiublic  ceremony,  or  a  fete  at  some 
feudal  castle  sufficed  to  evoke  the  muse  of  the  people.  The  inspiratipns  of  this 
fanciful  muse  were  often  in  striking  contrast  to  the  circumstances  which  had 
given  them  birth,  for  while  some  tragic  occurrence  would  serve  as  a  theme 
for  sarcastic  or  flippant  songs,  a  matter  which  seemed  to  be  a  cause  of 
universal  rejoicing  would  form  the  subject  for  some  doleful  ballad.  The 
divisions  in  popular  opinion  often  found  expression  in  their  songs,  and  thus, 
when  Jacques  Clement  assassinated  King  Henry  III.,  who  had  been  driven 
from  Paris  by  the  League,  at  St.  Cloud,  some  fanatical  people  sang  the 
murderer's  praises  in  the  following  lines  : — 


'  O  le  sainct  religieux, 
Jacques  Clement  bienUeureux, 
Des  Jacobins  I'excellence, 
Qui,  par  sa  benevolence, 
Et  de  par  le  Sainct-Esprit, 
A  inerite  asseur.mce 
La  haut  au  C'iel  oii  il  visL." 


The  Politicians,  or  Royalists,  rejoined  with  the  following  lines  : — 

"  II  fut  lue  par  un  meschant  mutin 
Jacques  Clement  qui  estoit  jacobin. 
Jacques  Clement,  si  tu  estois  u  naistre, 
Lag  1  nous  auriona  nostre  Roy,  noetre  maistie  1 " 

It  would  sometimes  happen  that  after  a  certain  interval  a  song  of  noble 
and  solemn  melancholy  woidd  be  converted  into  a  burlesque  parody  without 
any  apparent  cause  or  reason.  Thus  the  battle  of  Pavia  (1-/2-V),  at  which  the 
flower  of  the  French  nobility  perished  around  Francois  I.,  who  was  made 
prisoner,  was  a  most  appropriate  subject  for  a  popular  song,  and  amongst 


404  '  POPULAR  SONGS. 


other  touching  incidents  was  the  death  of  Jacques  de  Chabannes,  Lord  of  La 
Palice,  who  was  killed  at  the  feet  of  his  sovereign.  The  ballad,  composed  m 
his  honour,  began — 

"  Monsieur  de  La  Palice  est  mort, 
Est  mort  devant  Pavie."  .  .  . 

But  within  a  century  this  national  song  had  been  travestied  in  such  a  way 
that  it  had  become  impossible  to  recognise  it,  and  some  one  made  it  ridicidous 
by  adding  as  a  joke  to  the  above  two  lines — 


"  Helas  !  s'il  n'estoit  pas  mort, 
II  aeroit  encore  en  vie." 


Sometimes,  too,  there  would  reajppear  in  a  new  shape  some  old  song  Avhich 
was  scarcely  remembered  by  the  older  generation,  but  which  seemed  to 
acquire  fresh  youth  when,  with  an  altered  name,  it  was  applied  to  some  other 
subject.  Thus,  after  the  battle  of  Malplaquet  in  1709,  the  rimiour  of  the 
death  of  the  English  commander,  the  Duke  of  Marlborough,  having  spread 
through  the  ranks  of  the  French  army,  which  had  sufiered  so  much  at  his 
hands,  the  soldiers  began  to  sing,  out  of  revenge,  a  sort  of  comic  ballad,  which 
was  only  the  imitation  of  a  popular  song  entitled  the  "  Convoi  du  Due  de 
Guise,"  which  all  the  Huguenot  soldiers  knew  by  heart  after  the  assassiaation 
of  Francois  de  Lorraine,  called  Le  Balafre  (covered  with  scars),  beneath  the 
walls  of  Orleans  (1563).  Appended  are  some  of  the  couplets  of  this  old  song 
which  most  resemble  the  "  Chanson  de  Malbrough,"  and  which  was  revived 
two  centuries  later  by  the  court  of  Louis  XVI.,  when  Madame  Poitriae, 
the  nurse  of  the  Dauphin,  taught  it  to  Marie  Antoinette : — 


"  Qui  veut  ouir  chanson  ? 

C'est  du  grand  due  de  Guise, 
Doub,  dan,  don,  dan,  dou,  don, 
Dou,  dou,  dou, 
Qu'est  mort  et  enterre. 


Qu'est  mort  et  enterre. 
Aux  quatre  coins  de  sa  tombe, 
Doub,  dan,  don,  &c. 

Quatr'gentilhonuu'a  y  avoit. 


POPULAR  SONGS.  40; 


Quatr'gentilhomm's  y  avoit, 
Dont  r  un  portoit  son  casque 
Doub,  dan,  don,  &c. 
L'autre  sea  pistoleta. 

L' autre  ses  pistolets, 
Et  l'autre  son  epee, 
Doub,  dan,  don,  &c. 
Qui  tant  d'Hugu'nots  a  tues 


La  ceremonie  faite, 
Doub,  dan,  don,  etc. 
Chacim  s'allit  coucher. 

Chaeun  s'allit  coucher, 
Les  uns  avec  leurs  femme 
Doub,  dan,  don,  &c. 
Et  les  autres  tons  seals." 


Several  critics,  Genin  amongst  others,  have  attributed  a  still  more  ancient 
origin  to  the  "  Chanson  de  Malbrough,"  or  at  least  to  part  of  this  song,  in 
which  may  be  recognised  the  naive  and  sentimental  cast  of  the  poi^ular  songs 
of  the  thirteenth  century.  There  are  many  instances  which  might  be  cited  of 
songs  coming  down  from  century  to  century,  gradually  losing  all  the  souvenirs 
which  connected  them  with  the  distant  period  during  which  they  gushed 
forth  from  the  heart  of  the  people.  The  children  in  the  villages  of  Poitou 
still  sins'  as  an  authem  the  followino;  verse,  half  Latin,  half  French,  which 
doubtless  refers  to  the  captivity  of  King  John,  who  was  taken  prisoner  at  the 
battle  of  Poitiers  (September  17th,  1356)  : — 

*'  Christiana  Francia 
De  laquelle  le  chef  est  pvis, 
Hpkndens  yegni  gloria 
Aux  armes  do  la  floor  de  lys." 

By  the  side  of  the  historical  songs,  and  in  the  same  categor}'  with  them, 
must  be  cited  the  romantic  songs.  As  has  been  remarked  by  one  of  those  who 
have  studied  the  most  deeply  this  poetry  of  the  people,  "  the  narrative  in  them 
IS  abrupt  and  digressive,  leaving  secondary  details  in  the  shade,  and  treating 
only  of  the  salient  points.  The  same  forms  of  language  are  repeated  several 
times,  and  the  dialogues  are  reproduced  word  for  word  as  in  Homer.     The 


4o6  POPULAR  SONGS. 


refrain  is  sometimes  entirely  unconnected  with  tlie  subject  of  tlie  narrative." 
Perhaps  the  most  beautiful  of  these  short  j)oems  is  the  following,  which  has 
taken  different  forms  in  different  provinces  of  France,  and  which  is  known  as 
the  "  Complainte  de  Renaud."     The  poem  forms  a  complete  drama  : — 

"  Quand  Eenaud  de  la  guerre  viut, 


Sa  mere,  a  la  fenetre  en  haut, 

Dit :   '  Voici  venir  mon  fila  Eenaud.' 

/,«  Merc.  Eenaud,  Eenaud,  rejouis  toi, 

Ta  femme  est  accouchee  d'un  roi. 
Benaud.  Ni  de  ma  femme,  ni  de  mon  flls, 
Mon  coeur  ne  peut  se  rejoui ; 

Q,u'on  me  fasse  vite  un  lit  blanc 
Pour  que  je  m'y  couche  dedans. 
Et  quand  il  fut  mis  dans  son  lit, 
Pauvre  Eenaud  rendit  1' esprit. 

[Les  cloches  sonnent  le  irepttssement.) 

La  Reine.  Or,  dites-moi,  mere  m'amie, 

Qu'est-ce  que  j'entends  sonner  iei  ? 

La  Mire.  Ma  fille,  ce  sent  les  processions 
Qui  sortent  pour  les  Eogationa. 
{On  clone  le  cercucil.) 

La  Heine.  Or,  dites-moi,  mere  m'amie, 

Qu'eat-ce  que  j'entends  cogner  ici  ? 

La  Mere.  Ma  fille,  c'  sont  les  charpentiers 

Qui  raccommodent  nos  greniers. 

[Les  pretres  enlevcnt  Ic  corps.) 

La  Seine.  Or,  dites-moi,  mere  m'amie, 

Qu'est-ce  que  j'entends  chanter  ici  ? 

La  Mire.  Ma  fille,  c'  sont  les  processions 

Qu'on  fait  autour  de  nos  maisons. 

La  Seine.  Or  dites-moi,  mere  m'amie, 

Quelle  robe  prendrai-je  aujourd'hui  ? 
La  Mire.  Quittez  le  rose,  quittez  le  gris. 

Prenez  le  noir,  pour  mieux  choisi. 

La  Seine.  Or,  dites-moi,  mere  m'amie, 
Qu'ai-je  done  a  pleurer  ici  ? 

La  Mire.  Ma  fille,  je  n'  puis  plus  vous  le  cacher  : 
Kenaud  est  mort  et  enterre. 


POPULAR  SONGS. 


407 


La  Reine.  Torre,  ouvre-toi !  terre,  fends-toi ! 
Que  j'  rejoigne  Renaud,  mon  roi. 
Terre  s'ourrit,  terre  fendit, 
Et  la  belle  fut  engloutie." 

Religious  songs,  which  must  not  be  confused  ■with  the  liturgical  songs, 


Fig.  322.— The  Shepherds  cekhrating  the  Birth  of  the  Messiah  with  Hymns  and  Dancing  (End 
of  the  Fifteenth  Century). — Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving  from  a  "  Livre  d'Heuns" 
printed  by  Antoine  Verard. 


had  a  much  more  extensive  sphere  than  the  historical  songs,  for  they  com- 
prised prayers,  legends,  the  lives  of  the  saints,  miracles,  canticles,  and  the 
songs  pertaining  to  the  ceremonies  of  religion  and  the  festivals  of  the  Church. 
Of  the  three  distinct  categoi'ies  referred  lo  al)ii\-e,  that  of  religious  song  is  the 


4o8  POPULAR  SONGS. 


most  fruitful  in  ingenuous  works  which  bear  the  impress  of  the  faith  and  piety 
of  our  forefathers,  for  in  France  the  peoj)le  have  always  been  sincerely 
attached  to  religion.  It  is  true  that  popular  religious  songs  were  sometimes 
of  a  slightly  facetious  and  bantering  tone,  but  this  was  merely  a  natural 
emanation  of  the  Gallic  character  and  temperament.  The  Church  yery 
properly  opposed  the  introduction  of  profane  songs  into  the  sanctuary, 
though,  as  we  saw  in  the  chapter  on  Popular  Beliefs,  the  "  Prose  of  the  Ass  " 
long  held  its  own  against  the  condemnations  of  councils  and  synods.  We 
may  believe,  therefore,  that  in  many  dioceses  during  the  Middle  Ages  the 
religious  songs  in  the  vulgar  tongue,  known  under  the  generic  title  of  Noels 


Mlcgrettn.  Ir. 


Aucgretio.  it. 


Ai      l.ii     Na-ti     -    yi  -  tai   Clianton,  je      vo     su-pli     -    e       Le  vaibe  am  • 
tr. 


mail-lrt  tai  Jeiisqueai  nos'lui mi  -  li    -    e,    Po    no    decliar-bil  -  tai   Du  co-don 
Ir. 


-^ 


qui    no  li     -     b. 

Fig.  323.— A  Carol  in  Burgundy  Patois,  with  the  Music  annotated.— After  the  "  Nf  el  Borguignon 
de  Gui  Barozai,"  published  by  Bernard  de  La  Monnoye. 

(Christmas  Carols),  were  sometimes  mixed  up  with  the  sacred  hymns  which 
celebrated  the  birth  of  Jesus  in  the  stall  at  Bethlehem.  These  songs  in  the 
vulgar  tongue  were  sung  during  the  solemn  procession  which  was  formed 
during-  the  night  of  Christmas,  to  the  soimd  of  instruments,  and  in  the  dress 
of  shepherds,  around  the  crib  of  the  infant  Jesus  (Fig.  323).  The  persons 
who  represented  the  shepherds  are  said  to  have  sung,  as  early  as  the 
thirteenth  century,  a  carol  which  began — 

"  Seignora,  or  entendcz  a  nous. 

De  loin  somme3  venus  a  vous 

Pour  qnerre  Noel." 

Another  carol  of  the  same  period,  which  was  entirely  rewritten  m  tbe 


POPULAR  SONGS.  409 


sixteenth  century,  described  the  joy  of  the  animals  at  the  news  of  the  birth 
of  the  Holy  Child,  and  gave  an  opening  for  musical  eifects,  as  the  singers- 
imitated  the  crowing  of  the  cock,  the  lowing  of  the  ox,  the  bleating  of  the 
goat,  the  braying  of  the  ass,  and  the  bellowing  of  a  calf.     It  ran  as  follows  : — 

"  Comme  les  bestes  autrefois 
Parloient  mieux  latin  que  fran(;oi3, 
Le  coq,  de  loin  voyant  le  faiot, 
S'ecria :   Christus  natus  est  (le  Christ  est  ne)  ; 
Le  bceuf,  d'un  air  tout  ebaubi, 
Demande  :    Ubi,  nbi,  ubi  ?  (Oti,  ou,  oil  ?) 
La  chevre,  se  tordant  le  groin, 
Respond  que  c'est  a  Bethleem. 
ilaistre  baudet,  cnriosns  (curieus) 
De  Taller  voir,  dit :  JEaimis  .'  (Aliens  I) 
Et  droit  sur  ses  pattes,  le  veau 
Beugle  deux  fois :   Volo  !  rolo  !  (je  veux  !  je  veux  I)  " 

This  was  only  an  exception,  for,  as  a  general  rule,  the  carol  was  so  distin- 
guished above  all  other  religious  songs  for  its  pious  and  touching  simplicitv 
that  it  might  almost  ha^e  passed  for  a  canticle.  The  most  picturesque  and 
emotional  carols  were  those  of  Brittany,  though  all  over  France,  in  town 
as  well  as  in  country,  the  carols  preserved  their  former  characteristics  as 
long  as  religion  remained  supreme  in  men's  hearts.  The  whole  song  was 
devoted  to  glorifying  the  Divine  Messiah,  and  at  most  it  contained  a  final 
couplet  praying  God  to  pardon  miserable  sinners.  But  gradually  human 
thoughts  displaced  divine  and  religious  thoughts  in  this  popidar  song,  and 
the  carols,  while  still  retaining  their  original  form  and  pretensions,  became 
changed  into  personal  appeals  addressed  to  Jesus  and  the  Holy  Virgin  in 
the  interests  of  those  who  sang  them. 

In  the  Beauce  district,  for  instance,  it  is  still  the  custom  to  sing — 

"  Honneur  a  la  compagnie 

De  cette  maison. 
A  I'entour  de  votre  table, 

Nous  V0U3  saluons. 
Nous  soramea  v'nua  do  pais  etrange 

Dedans  ces  lieux : 
C'est  pour  vous  faire  la  demando 

De  la  part  a  Dieu." 

There  is  also  a  very  long  carol  which  was  comi^oscd  and  sung  during  the 

3   G 


4IO  POPULAR  SONGS. 


League,  and  this  carol,  doubly  remarkable  with  regard  to  tbe  sentiments  it 
contains  and  the  way  in  which  they  are  expressed,  is  in  reality  a  popular  song 
at  once  political  and  religious,  and  in  which  staunch  Catholics  deplore  the 
evil  of  their  time.  The  three  couj)lets  subjoined  will  give  the  reader  an  idea 
of  the  general  tone  of  this  pathetic  lay  : — 

"  Nous  te  reqnerons,  ii  mains  jointea, 
Vouloir  ouir  no3  griefves  plaintes, 

Nous,  pauvres  paatoureaux  ; 
De  toutes  parts  on  nous  aaocage, 
On  nous  detruit,  on  nous  ravage, 
Et  brebis  et  agneaux. 

Le  aoldat,  tons  les  jours,  sans  cesse. 
En  nos  casettes  nous  oppresse, 

Pille  et  emporte  tout : 
II  nous  compresse,  il  nous  ran<;:onne  ; 
A  son  depart,  souvent  nous  donne 

Encore  un  meschant  coup. 

Que  si  bientost  tu  n'y  prends  garde, 
Nous  mettant  sous  ta  sauvegarde, 

Helas !  e'est  fait  de  nous. 
Oste-nous  done  de  ces  mis^res, 
Eais  cesser  nos  civiles  guerres, 

Te  prions  \  genoux !  " 

The  Christmas  carol  soon  assumed  a  different  shape,  and,  ceasing  to  be 
even  a  religious  song,  was  made  to  contain  allusions  to  the  current  events  of 
the  day,  allusions  replete  with  epigrams  and  sarcasms.  It  became  in  some 
cases  impertinent,  indelicate,  and  blasphemous,  though  more  generally  it  was 
but  the  arch  expression  of  popular  good-humour.  The  appended  couplet 
gives  a  fair  idea  of  the  carol  of  the  sixteenth  century  : — 

"  Messire  Jean  Guillot, 
Cure  de  Saint-Denis, 
Apporte  plein  un  pot 
Du  Tin  of  son  logis. 
Prestres  et  eBColliers, 
Toute  icelle  nuictee, 
Se  sent  mis  a  sauter, 

Chanter 
Ut,  re,  mi,  fa,  sol,  la, 

la  la, 
A  gorge  desployee." 


POPULAR  SONGS.  411 


The  religious  canticles  and  ballads  preserved  their  characteristics  of  single- 
minded  devotion  much  longer  than  the  carols,  and,  unlike  the  works  manu- 
factured by  a  professional  poet,  they  resemble  rather  the  prayers  and  orisons 
set  to  church  music.  The  pilgrims,  the  relic  showers,  and  the  vendors  of 
consecrated  medals  chanted  in  slow  and  monotonous  tones  the  interminable 
stories  of  saints,  male  and  female — "  Genevieve  de  Brabant,"  "  St.  Roch," 
"  St.    Antoine,"  and  many  other  masterpieces  of    simple  faith,  which  have 


Fig.  324. — A  Ballad  Singer  accompanying  himself  upon  the  Violin. — Miniature  from  Manuscript 
of  the  Thirteenth  century,  No.  6,819.— In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 

come  down  to  us  in  modern  form,  and  which  will,  perhaps,  survive  centuries 
after  much  of  the  modern  and  printed  poetry  has  been  forgotten  (Fig.  320). 
The  following  modernised  song  dates,  beyond  all  doubt,  from  a  vciy  ancient 
epoch : — 

"  C'est  sainte  Catherine, 
La  fille  d'un  grand  roi : 
Son  pere  etait  paien, 
Sa  mfere  ne  I'etait  pas. 
Ave  Maria f  Sancta  Catharitw , 
Dei  mater,  alleluia. 


412  POPULAR  SONGS. 


Tin  jour  a  sa  priere 
Son  pore  la  trouva  : 
'  Catherine,  o  ma  fiUe, 
Catherine,  que  faia-tu  la  ? ' 
Are  Maria,  &c. 

'  J'adore,  j'adore,  mon  pere, 
Le  bon  Dieu  que  voilS. 
C'est  le  Dieu  de  ma  mere : 
Voire  Dieu  n'est  pas  la.' 
Are  Maria,  &c." 

The  legends  relating  to  the  Virgin  form  a  class  apart,  and  are  many  ol: 
them  endowed  with  special  charms.  Several  narratives  of  the  Middle  Ao^es 
were  devoted  to  celebrating  her  mercy  and  the  influence  which  she  possessed, 
because  of  her  motherhood,  over  God  himself.  There  is  a  Perieord  sono- 
brought  to  light  by  Count  de  Mellet,  which  in  modern  French  runs — 

"  TJne  ame  est  morte  cette  nuit : 
EUe  est  morte  sans  confession. 
Personne  ne  la  va  voir, 
Excepte  la  Sainte  Vierge. 
Le  Demon  est  a  I'entour  : 
'  Tenez,  tenez,  mon  fils  Jesus, 
Accordez-moi  le  pardon  de  cette  pauvre  ame.' 
'  Comment  voulez-TOus  que  je  lui  pardonne  ? 
Jamais  elle  ne  m'a  demande  de  pardon.' 
'  Jlais  si  bien  a  moi,  mon  fils  Jesus ; 
Elle  m'a  bien  demande  pardon.' 
'  Eh  bien  !  ma  mere,  vovis  le  voulez  ? 
Dans  le  moment  meme  je  lui  pardonne.'  " 

The  popular  domestic  songs  are  infinite  both  in  regard  to  numbers  and 
variety,  and  they  appealed  the  most  directly  to  the  heart  of  the  people. 
Conjugal  and  maternal  love  inspired  most  of  these  songs,  in  which  are 
depicted  with  singular  fidelity  the  joys  and  sorrows  of  home,  and  in  which 
the  business  of  life  is  shown  in  its  varying  shades.  These  songs  are  a  mixture 
of  epigram  and  elegy,  of  the  open  expression  of  the  tenderest  feelings  of  the 
human  heart  and  of  the  wildest  fancies,  and  they  depict  the  different  grada- 
tions of  the  social  scale.  These  domestic  songs  may  be  subdivided  into  many 
categories :  the  songs  of  the  soldier  and  of  the  sailor,  of  the  shejjherd  and 
of  the  labourer,  of  the  fisherman  and  of  the  hunter;  the  songs  of  indoor 
workmen,  such  as  the  weavers,  the  shoemakers,  the  spinners,  the  smiths,  and 


z 

> 

< 
u 

X 

o 

z 
w 


POPULAR  SONGS. 


4'3 


the  cai-penters ;  tlie  songs  of  the  compagnonnages  (ti-ades  unions)  ;  the  songs 
relating  to  the  culture  of  the  soil,  such  as  seed-time,  harvest,  and  vintao-e  • 
satirical  songs ;  songs  bearing  ujoon  the  various  phases  of  family  life,  such  as 
christening,  confirmation,  marriage,  death,  Avidowhood,  &q.  ;  convivial  and 
plaj^ul  songs  ;  roimdelaj'S  and  songs  of  childhood  ;  and  so  forth.  Types  of  all 
these  songs  are  to  be  found  in  M.  Ampere's  excellent  treatise  called  the 
"  Instructions  du  Comite  de  la  Langue,  de  I'llistoire  et  des  Arts  de  la  France." 


Fig.  325. The  Personification  of  Jlusic. — Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving  in  the  "Margarita 

Philosophica  "  (Bale  Edition,  4to,  1508). 


All  those  songs,  be  it  remembered,  which  had  no  known  authors,  or  which 
were  adopted  by  the  great  anonymous  and  collective  poet  called  the  People, 
are  in  reality  popular  songs,  and  must  not  be  confounded  with  (he  individual 
productions   of   written    jioctry,    many   of   them     very    indifVcreiit    in    ([uality, 


414  POPULAR  SONGS. 


whicli  Montaigne  contemptuously  designated  as  being  "  void  of  honour  and 
of  value."  Some  of  these  popular  songs,  for  all  their  errors  of  grammar  and 
their  incompleteness,  are  very  remarkable  works.  The  metre  often  seems 
wrong,  the  rhj^me  is  replaced  by  a  mere  assonance,  and  the  meaning  is  badly 
expressed  ;  but  these  trifliag  compositions  have  a  charm  all  their  own,  and 
present  the  true  tjqDe  of  popular  poetry.  The  professional  poets,  even  the 
greatest  of  them,  did  not  think  it  beneath  their  dignity  to  borrow  from  this 
popular  poetry,  which,  in  attempting  to  improve,  they  often  spoilt.  A  charm- 
ing couplet  is  that  which  Georges  de  Lalaing,  a  gentleman  of  the  court  of 
Burgundy,  who  happened  to  remember  having  heard  it  somewhere  in  Brabant, 
wrote  in  the  album  of  Helene  de  Merode : — 

"  Elle  s'en  va  aux  champs,  la  petite  bergiere, 
Sa  quenouille  fllant ;  son  troupeau  suyt  derriere. 
Tant  il  la  fait  bon  veoir,  la  petite  bergiere, 
Tant  il  la  fait  bon  \eoir." 

In  the  same  album  is  preserved  a  village  roundelay  which  was  sung  in  the 

Hainavilt : — 

"  Nous  estions  trois  sceurs  tout  d'une  volonte, 
Nous  allimes  au  fond  du  joly  bois  jouer.  .  .  . 
Vray  Dieu !     Qu'il  est  heureux,  qui  se  garde  d' aimer !  " 

Most  of  these  songs  were  set  to  popular  airs  which  were  familiar  to 
everybody,  and  the  unknown  origin  of  which  in  many  cases  went  back  for 
centuries.  Sometimes,  however,  the  music  had  been  composed  at  the  same 
tinie  as  the  words,  and  also  belonged  to  the  music  of  the  people,  which  has 
always  been  remarkable  for  its  exquisite  grace  and  simplicity  (Fig.  325). 

Every  province  and  town? — one  might  almost  add  every  village — had  its 
particular  songs,  which  were  preserved  in  the  memory  of  the  inhabitants  as 
safely  as  if  they  were  deposited  in  the  local  archives.  These  songs  repre- 
sented the  ideas,  the  beliefs,  the  manners,  and,  above  all,  the  idiom  of  the 
district,  and  this  idiom  limited  the  preservation  of  them  to  the  region  in 
which  they  were  composed.  Hence  we  have  a  mass  of  popidar  songs  which 
have  become  embedded  in  the  various  patois,  and  which  date  from  everj^ 
period  in  history.  The  patois  may  be  Flemish,  Picard,  Norman,  Poitou, 
Burgundian,  Provencal,  Auvergnat,  or  Languedoc,  but  in  all  alike  one 
hears  the  voice  of  the  people.     How  ancient  some  of  these  songs  are,  not- 


POPULAR  SONGS. 


41S 


withstandiug  the  modern  dialect  in  wliicla  they  are  expressed,  may  be  readily 
understood  when  one  hears  the  Berry  peasants  driving  their  oxen  to  an 
unintelligible  air  interspersed  with  Latin  words,  such  as  /  hos  and  Sta  bos ;  and 
so,  again,  in  several  popiilar  songs  in  the  Chartrain  and  Auvergne  districts 
there  occurs  the  refrain  la  guillone  and  la  guiJJona,  which  is  no  other  than 
the  song  of  Gallic  origin  terminating  with  the  words  Gui  Van  neu,  and  which 
long  survived  the  Druidic  ceremonies. 

The  various  races  of  men  settled  in  Euro^se,  and  the  various  countries 
which  make  up  that  continent,  formerly  possessed  their  own  popular  songs, 
and  thej-  were  anxious  to  preserve  them  as  records  of  their  nationality,  for 


Fig.  326. — Minnesingers. — Poesies  des  Minnesingers. — Mnnuscript  of  the  Fourteenth  Century. 
In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


these  popular  songs  were,  in  fact,  the  native  expression  of  the  character  of  the 
nation  which  produced  them.  An  effort  is  now  being  made  to  collect  them,  for 
they  are  the  rarest  and  most  interesting  documents  of  the  history  of  peoples. 
In  Germany,  whose  national  songs  had  already  been  collected  by  Charle- 
magne, there  appeared  in  the  twelfth  century  a  series  of  long  poems, 
derived  from  them,  which  made  up  the  splendid  epode  known  as  "  Niebe- 
lungen."  The  Gennan  poets  then  created  a  new  branch  of  .song.s,  which  were 
destined  by  their  very  characteristics  to  become  popular,  but  which  must  not, 
with  a  few  excej)tions,  be  looked  upon  as  works  emanating  from  the  people 
themselves.     The  Minnesingers  (or  singers  of  love-songs),  who  comi^osed  a 


416  POPULAR  SONGS. 


great  many  of  these  lyric  songs,  differed  but  little  from  the  troubadours  of 
Southern  France  (Fig.  326),  while  the  Meistersiugers  (master  singers)  had 
more  in  common  with  the  jugglers  of  the  tongue  of  Oil.  The  work  of  the 
Minnesingers  did  not  reach,  from  the  twelfth  to  the  fourteenth  century, 
beyond  the  courts  of  the  princes  and  the  castles  of  the  nobles,  who  them- 
selves aspired  to  sing  love-songs,  and  who  waged  unceasing  war  against  the 
ancient  popular  songs  of  Germany.  The  work  of  the  Meistersingers,  upon 
the  contrary,  was  intended  for  the  middle  and  the  lower  classes  (Fig.  327). 
These  poets  and  musicians,  who  devoted  their  efforts  to  a  branch  of  literature 
more  in  conformity  with  the  German  character,  had  quite  eclipsed  the 
Minnesingers  by  the  fifteenth  century,  and  popularised  a  new  branch  of 
poetry  which  contained  within  itself  the  germs  of  dramatic  art.  (See  below, 
chapter  on  National  Poetry.) 

The  popular  songs  of  Germany  are  especially  worth  studying  when  they 
take  the  eminently  poetic  form  of  ballads,  for  there  is  in  the  German  baUad, 
to  use  the  felicitous  expression  of  M.  Fertiault,  something  soft  and  pensive, 
which  can  be  felt  better  than  it  can  be  described — something  at  once  vague 
and  touching.  It  embodies,  as  a  rule,  a  slight  drama,  in  which  are  united  and 
fused  lyric,  dramatic,  and  familiar  elements.  Pensive  and  mystic,  it  hints  at 
more  than  it  actually  says,  and  it  exhales  as  it  were  a  refined  perfiune  of  the 
soul  which  kindles  the  deepest  emotions.  Germany,  like  France,  has  her 
popular  songs,  both  historical,  religious,  and  domestic,  and  they  are  in  a  more 
complete  state  of  preservation. 

England,  too,  is  rich  in  ancient  ballads  equal  to  those  of  Germany.  The 
English  ballads  are,  as  a  riile,  somewhat  epic  in  their  tendencies,  and  many  of 
them  are  of  such  a  length  that  they  assume  the  proportions  of  a  poem  in 
several  cantos.  But,  whatever  may  be  their  length  or  manner  of  composition, 
they  are  replete  with  tender  and  refined  sentiments  culled  from  the  marvellous 
fables  of  ancient  Britain.  Scotland  has  also  a  number  of  national  ballads 
reflecting  the  poetic  majesty  of  her  wild  scenery,  of  her  mist-enveloped  lakes, 
and  of  her  pine-covered  mountains.  Sir  "Walter  Scott,  in  his  "Songs  of 
the  Scotch,"  remarks  that  traditional  tales  and  songs,  accomiDanied  by  the 
flute  and  the  harp  of  the  minstrel,  were  probabty  the  sole  sources  of  amuse- 
ment possessed  by  the  Highlanders  during  their  short  intervals  of  peace. 
In  them  we  may  trace  the  source  whence  Macpherson  drew  the  fanciful 
utterances  which  he  puts  in  the  mouth  of  his  Ossian.     Ireland  is  not  less 


POPULAR  SONGS. 


4'7 


proud  of  her  national  ballads,  and  Thomas  Moore,  who  ^Dublished  them  for 
the  first  time,  preferred  them  to  the  Scotch  ballads. 

In  Denmark,  Sweden,  and  Norway  the  jjopular  songs  were  for  centuries 
the  only  history  transmitted  from  generation  to  generation :  all  these 
countries  had  their  national  poets,  named  Bcahh,  who  sang  upon  the  battle- 
fields in  order  to  insijirit  the  combatants  (Fig.  328).  These  poets,  themselves 
warriors,  improvised  to  the  sound  of  the  harp  rhjTned  songs  in  which  they 
related,  after  a  fashion  at  once  simple  and  striking,  the  great  military 
achievements  of  their  heroes,  whom  they  associated  with  the  sombre  deities 


Fig.  327.— German  Musicians  playing  the  Lute  and  the  Guitar. — Engraved  by  J.  Amman 
(Sixteenth  Century). 


of  the  Odin  mythology.  The  people  drank  deeply  and  incessantly  from  the 
spring.s  of  this  wild  and  warlike,  yet  pensive  poetry,  and  these  anonj-mous,  and 
in  the  true  sense  popular,  works  formed  a  collection  known  by  the  name  of 
"Kemperiser."  M.  Marmicr  points  <jut  the  resemblance  of  the  popular  songs 
of  Sweden  to  those  of  Scotland,  Grei-many,  Holland,  and  Denmark.  The 
Danes,  aa  he  remarks,  were  long  enough  in  direct  communication  with 
England  to  interchange  the  legends  of  heroism,  religion,  and  love. 

•",  n 


4i8 


POPULAR   SONGS. 


Russia  and  Poland  haTe  popular  songs  wMch,  tltough.  dissimilar  from  one 
anotliei',  date  from  tlie  same  epocli  of  the  Middle  Ages.  In  Poland  tlie 
popular  songs  are  mainly  historical  and  warlike,  or  touch  upon  chivalry, 
^yhile  in  Russia  they  are  rather  religious  and  domestic,  and  are  used  by  the 
peasants  to  portray  their  joys  and  sorrows.  Servia  and  the  Danubian 
provinces  are  equally  rich  in  popular  songs,  which  have  been  collated  in  a 
work  called  "Danitza,"  many  of  them  being  of  very  ancient  date.  They 
consist,  for  the  m.ost  part,  of  love  and  war  songs,  and  are  remarkable  for  their 
exquisite  refinement.  Modern  Greece  has,  like  Servia,  formed  a  collection  of 
her  ancient  popular  songs,  many  of  which,  in  the  shape  of  a  legendary  baUad 


S= 


zt=a- 


^JEB 


I'ssi^^sl^ 


Hiug 


v^r     medh    liior  -  vi ! 


Hitt      lae 


mik  jafu    -   an 


l^E&-&^ 


33^ 


rac:— ?2r:2z 


ia=g: 


=^-=;5=g= 


at       Eald-urs 


foJ  -  ur 


bekk- 


bun  -a 


veit   ek 


-g=g- 


at  smul  - 


nn—Oi 


^^ 


urn;      Diekkma      bjor      at       bragJ-i 


biu"  -  vid  -   mu  haus- 


=lr:rr:1=r:^ 


-.a— 


~a:ztir- 


=  rg: 


a; 


-    i    KeiQ      ek  medh    oedi-u       oid  til     \idr-is 


hall-ar. 


Fig.  32S. — Song  of  the  Sword.  Original  Melody  of  the  "  Krakumal,"  an  ancient  record  of  the 
ScandiuaTian  Scalds,  published  by  Fetis  in  his  "  History  of  Music,"  after  the  version  of  it  hy 
M.  Legis.  Each  of  the  couplets  of  this  melody  commences  with  a  line  meaning,  "  "We  have 
fought  with  the  sword." 


of  the  Middle  Ages,  retain  a  perfume  of  antiquity.  Some  of  these  songs  are 
contemporaneous  with  the  conquest  of  Constantinople  by  the  French  crusaders 
in  the  twcKth  century,  and  -n-ith  the  occupation  of  the  Morea,  which  then 
became  a  French  principality. 

Italy  cannot  well  claim  as  popular  songs  the  canzoni  composed  by  her 
poets,  who  styled  themselves  reciters  in  rhyme  and  love  swains,  after  the  fashion 
of  the  troubadours  of  Provence  and  Languedoc.  These  pieces  of  poetry,  full 
of  concetti,  metaphors,  and  mystic  exaggerations,  were  doubtless  considered, 


POPULAR  SONGS. 


419 


by  the  gallants  and  ladies  of  the  court,  to  confer  great  honour  upon  Guido 
Cavalcanti,  Cino  de  Pistoia,  Guido  Orlandi,  and  the  rest  of  the  composers ; 
but  they  took  no  root  amongst  the  peoj^le,  who  either  did  not  understand 
them  or  turned  them  into  jest.  Rhythm  and  song  were  in  a  measure  instinc- 
tive requirements  in  a  land  where  the  love  of  poetry  and  music  is  innate.  As 
late  as  the  last  century  the  gondoliers  of  Venice  were  in  the  habit  of  singing 
verses  from   Tasso  while  plying  the  oar  (Fig.  329).     But  these  were   not 


Fig.  329. — Vcnclian  Gondola. — From  the  ''  Grand  Procession  of  the  Doge  of  Venice,"  attributed 
to  Jost  Amman,  published  at  Fraulifort  in  1597. 


popular  songs,  to  find  which  we  must  search  the  numerous  patois,  wliich  were, 
many  of  them,  ccpial,  if  not  superior,  to  the  correct  Italian  language.  Tlierc 
was  not  a  town  or  village  which  had  not  its  local  literature,  and  wliich  could 
not  boast  of  the  clever  and  poetical  w(jrks  of  some  one  or  moi'e  of  its  sons. 

In  Spain,  more  than  in  any  other  country  of  Europe,  popular  song  had  a 
very  inarked  and  s])ecial  ])hysiognom}%  and   assumed   (lie  form,  no(  of  ballad. 


420 


POPULAR  SONGS. 


dreamy  and  pensire,  or  light  and  airy,  but  of  tlie  heroic  songs,  such  as  the 
chansons  de  geste  written  in  Romanic.  Nothing,  too,  answers  more  closely  to 
the  best  definition  which  has  been  giA^en  of  popular  song.  M.  Damas-Hinard, 
the  translator  of  the  "  Cid,"  says,  "  Romances  are  not  only  the  true  history 
of  the  Middle  Ages  in  Spaia,  they  are  also  its  poetry.  The  Spanish  people, 
the  poets  of  the  Romances,  composed  Avith  enthusiasm  these  songs,  of  which 
they  themselves  are  the  subject  and  the  heroes.  For  many  centuries,  and  in 
each  generation,  the  greatest  writers  set  themselves  to  improve  and  to  embellish 
them."  The  most  important  part  of  the  Spanish  Romancero  consists  of  the 
romances  of  the  "Cid,"  which  date,  according  to  the  critics,  from  the  eleventh 
or  the  thirteenth  centiuy,  but  long  before  this  Spain  possessed  popular  songs 
which  must  date  from  the  reign  of  King  Roderick  in  the  eighth  century.  A 
collection  of  the  Spanish  popular  songs,  from  the  conquest  of  Granada,  by 
Gonzalvo  of  Cordova,  in  1492,  to  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century,  wovild  be 
a  verjr  oneroiis  task,  but  if  not  undertaken  the  world  will  ultimately  lose  the 
beautiful  historical  romances  which  the  muleteers  of  Andalusia  used  to  sing 
to  the  accompaniment  of  the  mandolin. 


Fig.   330. — Frencli  Trouveur. — After  a  Drawing  from  the  Poems  of  Guillaume  de  Machaut. 
Manuscript  of  the  Foui'teenth  Century. — In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


NATIONAL    POETRY. 


Decadence  of  Latin  Poetry. — Origins  of  Vulgar  Poetry. — Troubadoui'S,  Trouvenrs,  and  Juggler.?. 
— Rutebeuf. — Thibaud  of  Navarre  and  hia  School. — Marie  de  France. — "Romance  of  the 
Renard." — The  "  Guyot  Bible." — The  "Romance  of  the  Rose." — The  Minnesingers.- — Dante. 
— The  "  Romancero." — The  Meistersingers. — Petrarch. — English  Poets  ;  Chaucer. — Eustache 
Deschamps,  Alain  Chattier,  Charles  d'Orleans,  Villon. — Chambers  of  Rhetoric. — Poets  of  the 
Court  of  Burgundy. — Modern  Latin  Poetry. — The  Poems  of  Chivalry  in  Italy. — Clement 
Marot  and  his  School. — The  Epic  Poems,  Tasso,  Camoens. — Poets  of  Germany  and  of  the 
Northern  Countries. — Ronsard  and  his  School. — Poetry  under  the  Valois  Kings. 


I^NCE  the  Barbarians  establislied  themselves 
upon  the  ruins  of  the  Roman  empire  in 
the  We.st,"  says  M.  Charles  Nisard,  in  his 
graphic  history  of   poetry  amongst  the 
different  peoples  of  Europe,  "  the  down- 
fall of  eloquence  and  of  poetry  occurred 
with  startling  rapidity.      lioethius  wrote 
in  his  prison  the  treatise  on  the  '  Consola- 
tion of  Philosophy,'  and  was  put  to  death 
shortly  afterwards  (524).     This  treatise, 
which  combines  the  highest  of  ancient 
morality  with   the   tcndcrest  feelings  of  Christian    resignation,  is   the   last 
protest  of  an   expiring  art ;    it  is  the  voice  of  the  swan  exhaling  its  last 
melody  beneath  the  knife  which  is  about  to  immolate  it." 

Boethius  was,  in  fact,  one  of  the  last  Romans  who  wrote  Latin  ver.ses  with 
the  true  classic  ring  in  them.  Since  the  reign  of  Thcodosius  the  Great,  Latin 
poetry  had  been  gradually  declining,  and  the  Church  had  ceased  to  use  it 
except  for  her  sacred  hymns.  This  is  why  most  of  the  poets  fr(jm  the  fifth  to 
the  seventh  century — St.  Paulinus,  Scdidius,  St.  Prosper,  Sidonius  Apollinaris, 
Juvencus,  Venantius  Fortunatus,  &c. — wrote  only  upon  pidiis  uv  nidi'al 
subjects.      Tlic    singing    ol'    liynms    was    calculated,    in    tlic    ujiinidii    of    tlie 


422  NATIONAL  POETRY. 


Cliurcli,  to  put  an  end  to  certain  heretical  or  blasphemous  songs  which  the 
Barbarians  or  the  Romans  of  the  decadence  were  in  the  habit  of  repeating ; 
and  the  hopes  of  the  Church  were  eventually  fulfilled. 

The  Romanic  language,  which  in  various  forms  Avas  current  throughout 
Europe  from  the  sixth  to  the  tenth  century,  produced  no  other  poetical  works 
than  the  popular  songs  which  were  transmitted  from  generation  to  generation, 
and  which,  not  having  been  collected,  as  the  Teutonic  songs  were  by  order  of 
Charlemagne,  soon  became  effaced  from  the  memory  of  the  people.  (See 
prcAaous  chapter,  Fopular  Songs.)  The  written  poetry,  which  was  cultivated 
by  a  few  men  of  letters  and  clerks,  continued  to  be  in  Latin  (Fig.  331),  but 
it  was  disfigured  by  words  of  new  creation.     It  is  not  until  the  tenth  century 


ScvTcftdnmi  'B^cktlce-  decufmenm^- 
J)  unrr|ucfaup*tctilo  yiiliteftni  olpnjpicum^ 

Fig.  331. — Horace's  Poems. — Fragment  from  the  "Ode  to  Majcenas." — Manuscript  of  the  Tenth 
Centmy.' — In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 

that  we  find  the  first  poetical  samples  of  the  Romanic  language  of  the  North 
and  of  the  Romanic  language  of  the  South  of  France.  The  oldest  pieces  of 
French  poetry  are  the  Cantilena  of  St.  Eulalie ;  the  two  poems  of  the  manu- 
script of  Clermont-Ferrand,  devoted  to  St.  Leger  and  to  the  Passion  of  Jesus 
Christ ;  and,  in  the  eleventh  century,  the  "  Chanson  de  St.  Alexis."  In  the 
Provencal  language  we  have  the  "  Mystery  of  the  Wise  and  of  the  Foolish 
Virgins,"  previously  to  which  came  the  "  Poem  of  Boethius."  The  latter  is  a 
piece  in  verse,  of  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  lines,  upon  the  captivity  of 
Boethius,  and  these  lines,  of  ten  sj^Uables  each,  are  divided  into  stanzas  of 
unequal  length,  each  stanza  terminating  with  the  same  masculine  rhyme.  This 
kind  of  poem  is  unquestionably  anterior  to  the  tenth  century.  Such  are  the 
origins  of  the  language  of  French  poetry. 


NATIONAL  POETRY.  4.23 


From  this  period  vulgar  poetry  was  foiiridcd,  like  Latin  rliyiiiud  poetry, 
ujjou  the  accent  and  the  assonance.  It  may  furtlier  be  affirmed  that  this 
vulgar  poetry  was  sung,  and  that  the  jugglers,  who  repeated  verses  after  a 
musical  mood  while  plaj^ing  the  violin,  had  at  that  time  come  into  existence. 
It  is  therefore  certain  that  the  first  trouveurs  and  troubadours  were  contem- 
porary with  the  formation  of  this  Romanic  language,  which  was  expressed  in 
accented,  syllabic,  and  consonant  verse.  The  trouvcur  in  the  North  and  the 
troubadour  in  the  South  were  alike  the  poets  who  knew  how  io  find  {irohar) — 
that  is  to  say,  invent — and  who  clothed  their  thoughts  in  literary  shape.  AVe 
do  not  know  of  any  troubadours  before  the  eleventh  century,  and  the  first  to 
open  the  brilliant  era  of  this  new  poetry  was  William  IX.,  Coimt  of  Poitiers, 
born  in  1070,  who,  at  the  death  of  his  father,  became  Duke  of  Aquitaine  and 
Gascony.  Several  pieces  of  his  which  have  been  published  show  that  the 
llomanic  language  was  already  in  a  flourishing  state.  After  this  there  was  a 
general  development  of  poetry,  and  it  is  necessary  to  subdivide  the  trou- 
badours into  several  schools.  The  first,  and  perhaps  the  most  important,  is  the 
Limousin  school,  of  which  Bertrand  de  Born,  Gaucelm  Faydit,  and  Bernard 
de  Veutadour  were  the  chiefs.  To  the  Gascony  school  belong  Geoffrey  Rudel, 
Aruauld  de  ]Mar\eilh,  and  twenty  others.  The  school  of  Auvergne  can  claim 
the  stui'dy  satirist,  I'ierre  Cardinal,  and  Pons  de  Capdcuil  (Fig.  832). 
Rapnond  Vidal  is  the  hero  of  the  Toulouse  school,  Guillaume  Iliquier  of 
that  of  Narbonne,  and  Raymond  Gaucehn  of  that  of  Beziers.  Lastly  comes 
the  Provencal  school,  to  which  belong  Raimbaud  of  Yaqueiras  and  Folquet 
of  Marseilles,  and  a  hundred  other  writers  scarcely  less  famous. 

These  troubadours  were  men  of  lively  imagination  and  ready  wit,  possessed 
of  abundant  humour,  which  ^\'as  by  turn  gay,  spiteful,  and  caustic.  Their 
poetry,  which  is  a  dim  reflection  of  the  works  of  the  early  Roman  writers,  is 
essentially  southern,  being  devoted  in  most  cases  to  the  multiform  expression 
of  the  most  refined  gallantry ;  it  abounds  in  tender  reveries  and  in  descrijj- 
tions  of  beautiful  scenery.  This  poetry  was  highly  appreciated  by  the  society 
of  that  ago,  and  every  one,  from  the  princes  and  nobles  to  the  tradesmen  and 
the  artisans,  held  it  a  high  honour  to  be  a  poet.  We  know  of  more  than  two 
hundred  troubadours  who,  during  three  centuries,  wrote  with  success  in  every 
branch  of  Romanic  poetry,  and  who  have  left  behind  them  an  immense 
collection  of  charming  and  polished  works.  These  works,  most  of  which  are 
still  unpublished,  had  reached  as  far  as  Italy,  inasmuch  as  we  know  that  they 


4H 


NATIONAL   POETRY. 


were  liiglily  appreciated  by  Dante ;  and  the  poetry  of  the  troubadours  was 
specially  notable  for  its  gracefulness  of  invention,  science  of  rhythm,  infinite 
variety  of  form,  abundant  imagery,  and  richness  of  colour.  Most  of  it  con- 
sisted of  love-songs  and  pastorals,  but  there  were  some  religious  and  satirical 
pieces,  many  of  the  latter  being  very  severe,  known  by  the  name  of  sirventes. 

When  certain  strolling  jugglers  of  the  South  imported  the  poems  of  the 
troubadours  into  the  central  and  northern  provinces  of  France  in  the  beginning 


Mouvement  animd. 


zazzti 


^^ 


=t^ 


:?-, 


Hiip 


^4=a 


H3 


1^ 


Us  gays      co-norlz  me  fai     gay-a  -  men    far      ga-ya    chan  -  so      gai  fag 


i^E^fmm^S: 


z±z 


e    gai         sem  -  blan.  Gay  de 


t-t^L-t^? 


zi  ■  rier     io  -  ios     gai    a  -  le  -  grar.    Per  gai  ■ 


lit 


m 


zdzziz 


^Igip^^lia^ii^fpl^^EEgL^ 


+ 

a  ton   -   ap  gai   cors  ben     es 


tan. 


Ab  cuy    tro  bom  gai  so  -  lalz   e 


gai      ri 


-T' 


-G>- 


~^- 


=s= 


slig^pli^3=y^ 


Gai  -  ia  culh-ir.     Gai  de      port. 


Gai 


io    -     ven. 


;5=s='- 


pi 


m 


Ei 


Gai-a      beulali.  Gaichan-tar,  Gai     al-bi  -  re.  GaidiU   pla   -   zen. 

Gaiioi,  Gai  prelz.  Gai    sen.     I  -  eu        soi  gais,  car  soi  sieus     li  -  na      -      men 

Fig.  332. — Song  of  the  Troubadour,  Pons  de  Capdeuil,  with  the  Music. — Published  by  Fetis,  after 
Manuscript  in  National  Library,  Paris. 


of  the  thirteenth  century,  these  provinces  had  long  possessed  a  native  poetry 
in  the  vulgar  tongue,  and  they  also  possessed  poets  who  called  themselves 
trouveurs  (Fig.  333),  to  distinguish  them  from  the  jugglers  who  had  been  in 
the  habit,  for  three  or  four  centuries  past,  of  singing  popular  songs  while 
playing  upon  different  stringed  instruments.  As  soon  as  the  Romanic 
language  of  Northern  France  had  made  sufficient  progress  to  become  a 
written  language,  poetry  was  its  spontaneous  expression.     It  was  to  indicate 


NATIONAL  POETRY. 


42s 


the  line  of  demarcation  which  separated  the  Tongue  of  Oil  and  the  Romanic 
language  of  the  South  that  the  latter 
took  the  name  of  the  Tongue  of  Oc.  But 
it  must  be  exjiressly  mentioned  that  the 
trouveurs,  notwithstanding  certain  local 
imitations  of  the  poetry  of  the  trouba- 
dours, have  nothing  in  common  with 
the  latter  in  respect  to  literary  inven- 
tion and  poetical  genius.  It  was  the 
trouveurs  who  had  the  honour  of  creating 
in  the  eleventh  century,  or  even  earlier, 
the  chamons  de  (jede  and  romances  of 
chivalry  which  have  been  translated 
into  every  language,  and  which  have  no 
parallel  in  the  Literature  of  the  Tongue 
of  Oc.  (See  previous  chapter,  Romances.) 
The  Tongue  of  Oil  had  from  its  very 
inception  produced  two  families  of  poets 
of  utterly  different  characteristics,  and 
who  represented,  so  to  speak,  epic  poetry 
and  light  poetry.  The  great  trouveurs, 
those  who  collected  the  popular  songs 
and  the  national  traditions  to  convert 
them  into  chansons  de  geste  and  romances 
of  chivalry,  were,  in  many  cases,  in  the 
domestic  service  of  princes  and  nobles; 
they  lived  all  together  amongst  the 
warriors  for  whom  they  composed  the 
long  national  poems  which  they  after- 
wards recited  to  the  sound  of  the  violin 
at  festivals  and  assemblies.  All  that 
relates  to  romances  has  been  treated  of 

in    a   previous   chapter.      But    the   lesser    ^'S-   333.-Trouveur   accompanying   himself 

upon  the  Violin. — Sculptured  Work  upon 
trouveurs,  those  who  may,  perhaps,  have  the   Portico  of  the  Abbey  of  St.   Denia 

been   subject   to   the    influence   of    the  (Twelfth  Century). 

troubadours,  and  many  of  whom  were  no  better  than  strolKng  players,  created 

3  I 


42  6  NATIONAL   POETRY. 


the  gallant  and  joj'ous  literatnre  of  the  Tongue  of  Oil.  They  had,  like  the 
troubadours,  their  serrentois,  their  descors,  their  rotruenges ;  they  borrowed 
their  lays  from  the  singers  of  Brittany,  and  were  the  inventors  of  ihejoux- 
parfis,  ihe  fabliaux,  and  the  contes,  all  of  which  are  thoroughly  French.  The 
fabliau  (metrical  tale)  is  the  best,  but  at  the  same  time  the  most  immoral,  of 
the  productions  of  the  trouveurs  and  jugglers  who  wrote  in  the  Tongue  of 
Oil.  These  fabliaux  are  many  of  them  masterpieces  of  wit  and  insinuation, 
and  abound  in  strokes  of  humour,  while  the  eight-syllable  lines  are  well 
adapted  to  their  style.  In  most  of  these  works  it  is  easy  to  trace  the  ancient 
sources  from  which  the  authors  borrowed  their  generally  indecent  subjects  of 
sono-.  Others,  however,  were  of  their  own  invention,  and  these  latter  were 
not  the  least  immoral,  for  the  trouveurs  of  the  people  were,  for  the  most  part, 
men  of  dissolute  life. 

Eutebeuf  is  the  most  celebrated  of  these  trouveurs- jugglers,  and  he  has 
left  a  mass  of  exquisite  and  witty  compositions,  nearly  all  of  which  are  satires 
upon  the  nobles,  the  monks,  and  the  clergy.  He  is  doubtless  depicting  his 
own  life  of  poverty  when  he  describes  how  he  and  his  companions  journeyed 
from  castle  to  castle,  half  dead  with  cold  and  hunger,  begging,  often  in  vain, 
to  be  allowed  to  give  their  poetry  and  music.  Most  of  them  were  not  more 
exemplary  in  their  conduct  than  Rutebeuf  himself ;  and  one  of  them,  Colin 
Muset,  made  an  attack  upon  the  King,  who  did  not,  however,  condescend  to 
notice  his  violent  diatribe.  But  these  poetic  excesses  were  not,  on  the  whole, 
favourable  to  the  trouveurs  and  jugglers,  who  soon  found  themselves  repulsed 
with  contempt  wherever  they  went. 

There  was  only  one  school  of  trouveurs,  most  of  whom  were  themselves  of 
noble  birth,  in  favour  with  royalty  and  the  nobility,  and  it  comprised  such 
men  as  Queues  or  Conon  of  Bethune  (Fig.  334),  and  Count  Thibaud  of  Cham- 
pagne, afterwards  King  of  Navarre,  who  was  the  most  illustrious  of  them  all 
(Fig.  335).  This  school,  in  fact,  rivalled  that  of  the  troubadours.  The  songs 
of  Thibaud  formd  their  way  as  far  as  Italy,  and  Dante,  who  had  got  them 
by  heart,  mentioned  in  his  work,  "Be  Vidgari  Eloquentia,"  the  King  of 
Navarre  as  "  an  excellent  master  in  poetry."  One  of  the  pupils  and  rivals  of 
Thibaiid  of  Champagne  was  his  vassal,  Gace  Bride.  Amongst  the  princes  and 
lords  of  whom  the  gallant  spirit  of  chivalry  had  made  poets  at  this  epoch 
may  be  mentioned  the  Lord  of  Coucy,  Pierre  Duke  of  Brittany,  Jean  de 
Brienne,  GuiUaume  de  Ferrieres,   Ungues  de  Lusignan,   and  many  others 


NATIONAL  POETRY. 


427 


wlio  are  alluded  to  b)^  M.  Paiiliu  Paris  iii   volume  xxiii.   of  his  "  Ilistoire 
Litterairc." 

These  troiiveurs  of  the  nobilit}^,  imitators  of  the  troubadours,  would  not 
probabl}'  have  succeeded  in  rehabilitating  the  poetrj^  of  tlie  Tongue  of  r)il,  which 
had  been  cast  into  discredit  by  the  trou^•eurs-jugglers,  but  for  the  assfstance 
of  true  i)oets,  who,  declining  to  emerge  from  their  retreats  in  order  to  scour 
the  country,  devoted  their  time  to  the  composition  of  serious  and  valuable 
works.  Marie  de  France,  who  was  one  of  this  number,  and  who  was  a 
Norman  by  birth,  passed  part  of  her  youth  at  the  court  of  Henry  ITT.,  King 


AUfqretto. 


^ 


^ 


A -In!  a  -  mors,  com  du-re     de-par   (i 


i^iiiiiiii' 


Ml- 


mw^m 


^^- 


»^j: 


fe  -  re 


-• 

de  la  iiiei  lourQui  on'iues    fust 


Y-""* 


\jz\^- 


l=jt 


"r:::5rrnz^rilzz:i 


a-iiie  e      n^ser-  vi 


el      Dic'X 


ni3  ra-iiiaiiie      4    li      par  sa  doj-^oiir.      Si   voi- rcinont,  qui  m'en  pars  a       doni mr. 


Lasl  qu'di-jedilpja  lie  m'en  pars-je  mi 


Se    li    cors  va  servir  no 


^t- 


stre  si  •  gnour,    Licucrs  lemiint  del    loiil     en  sa  b;iil  -  li      -      e. 

Fig.  33i. — "Serventois"  of  the  Tioiiveur,  Uuencs  of  Bethune,  upon  the  Crus  ide. — PuhlishfJ  1); 
Fetis,  after  Manuscript  in  the  National  Lilirury,  Paris. 


of  England,  who  had  asked  her  to  put  into  rhyme  the  legends  which  formed 
part  of  the  traditions  of  Brittany.  In  addition  to  these  sombre  and  tragic 
lays,  which  were  well  suited  to  her  brilliant  imagination,  she  comijoscd  for 
Count  William  de  Dampierre  a  collection  of  fables,  imitated  after  ^Ivsop, 
called  "  YsoiK't,"  in  which  we  find  somelhing  of  the  naivete  and  grace  of  La 
Fontaine.  These  ingenious  imitations  of  vFsop,  which  wore  in  much  ftivour 
(luring  the  Middle  Ages,  were  preceded  b\'  a  great  romantic  and  allegorical 
couipositiou  eiifitlcd  tlic  "  Udiiiau  de  Itcuard  "  (the  "  jtdiuaiicc  of  IJie  b'o.x  "), 


42  S 


NATIONAL   POETRY. 


the  principal  incidents  in  wliich  were  also  borrowed  from  tlie  work  ascribed 
to  ^sop. 

This  "  Roman  de  Renard,"  which  comprised  thirty- two  branches  springing 
from  the  same  trunk,  but  without  forming  a  connected  and  homogeneous 
whole'  was  undoubtedly  composed  bj'  different  authors,  and  at  different 
epochs,  according  to  the  requirements  of  the  jugglers  who  recited  or  sang  it 
in  the  towns  and  villages,  and  who  thus  acquired  for  it  a  very  widespreading 
popularity.  The  middle  and  lower  classes,  more  especially,  took  a  lively 
interest  in  the  amusing  and  satirical  adventures  of  the  rulpeculus,  personified 
under  tlie  name  of  Master  Renard,  and  vying  in  cunning  and  mischief  with 


s^^ptS^^^il^E^^iiSSiE^^lipi 


A-morsme     fait    commen  -  cier  U  -  ne    chanfon    no  -  ve    -    le  ,         E-le  me 


vuet      en  -  sei-gnier  A 


-  mer  la  plus     be    -    le,       Qui  soil  el    mont  vi-va.it, 

rn-i-^- 


r^isi[fiigi3iii^giPiiii 


C'est  la    be  -  leau  corsgent,  C'esl  ce  -  le    rfonl  je  chant.  Diex  m'endoinl  le    le   no- 


i 


S3aE 


puginiiiiiiiis^iii 


le,    Qui  soit  a     mon  ta-lent,  Que  menu         et    sovcnt,  Mescueispor 


— 3— ^if— i-j"^    a — ^':i~z\ — — I — T — "• 


r 

li      sau        -        le  -  le. 

Fig.  335. — Song  of  Tliibaud,  Count  of  Champagne,  with  the  Music. — Published  by  Fetis,  after 
Manuscript  (No.  7,222)  in  National  Library,  Paris. 


his  uncle  the  Wolf,  personified  under  the  name  of  Ysoigrin.  The  only  one  of 
the  authors  whose  name  has  come  down  to  us  is  Pierre  de  St.  Cloud.  Satirical 
poetrj'-  was  then  in  vogue,  and  the  writers,  who  were  no  longer  the  discredited 
and  despised  jugglers  of  a  former  time,  were  very  severe  upon  all  sorts  and 
conditions  of  men. 

One  of  these  general  satires,  which  had  a  great  success  under  the  title  of 
the  "  Guyot  Bible,"  was  composed  by  an  ecclesiastic,  Guyot  de  Provins, 
whose  work  displays  much  trenchant  wit,  but  of  a  very  truculent  kind.     He 


NATIONAL   POETRY. 


429 


may  be  called  the  Juvenal  of  the  Middle  Ages.  A  worthy  citizen  of  Lille, 
one  Jacqueinart  Gelee,  published  a  work  of  a  similar  kind  under  the  title  of 
"Renart  Eenouvele."  This  poet  of  the  end  of  the  thirteenth  centurj-  rises 
almost  to  eloquence  in  certain  passages  where  he  inTeighs  against  the  ■s'ices 
which  he  attributes  to  the  upper  classes.  Another  poet  of  Champagne,  who 
preferred  to  remain  anonj'mous,  reproduced  the  original  "  Roman  de  Renard  " 
in  a  very  diffuse  and  j)rolix  poem,  entitled  "Renart  le   Contrefait,"  which, 


'vi)  kUnactox'Von   'Vnnerldnh  a   \  J 


Fig.  336. — I'oelical  and  Musical  Congress  at  Warlburg,  in  1207.  The  Minnesingeis,  Waltber 
Vogelweide,  Wolfram  of  Eschentach,  Reinmar  of  Zweter,  Henry  called  the  Virtuous  Writer, 
Henrj'  of  Ofterdingen,  and  Klingsorof  Hungary.— Miniature  from  the  Treatise  on  the  Minne- 
Bingera. — Manuscript  of  the  Fourteenth  Century,  in  National  Library,  Paris. 


like  its  original,  is  a  satire  upon  humanit}',  represented  in  the  shape  of 
certain  animals.  The  "Roman  de  Fauvel"  is  also  an  allegorical  satire  upon 
the  luxiiry  and  ambition  of  the  great. 

The  lettered  public  had  taken  such  a  fancy  to  these  satirical  poems  that 
the  "Roman  de  la  Rose  "  ("Romance  of  the  Rose"),  which  Guillaume  de  Lorris 
had  left  unfinished,  was  resumed  and  completed  by  Jean  de  Meung  in  a  very 


43°  NATIONAL   POETRY. 

diiJerent  shape,  and  witli  a  meaning  diametrically  opposite  to  that  which  had 
inspired  the  author  of  the  first  part,  who  had  merely  endeavoured  to  imitate 
Ovid's  "  Ars  Amandi."  The  poem  of  Guillaume  de  Lorris  had  caused  quite 
a  new  sensation  at  the  French  court,  the  ladies  more  especially  being  enthu- 
siastic in  its  favour,  and  they  regretted  that  the  author  did  not  live  to  finish 
it.  It  was  not  till  sixty  years  afterwards  that  Jean  de  Meung,  surnamed 
Clopinel,  resumed  the  work,  and  though  a  man  of  erudition  and  a  philosopher, 
he  did  not  possess  the  delicacy  and  refinement  which  were  the  distinguishing 
features  of  Guillaume  de  Lorris's  talent.  Thus  the  poem,  as  continued,  was 
an  entirely  new  piece,  except  that  the  personages  had  the  same  names  as  in 
the  first  part.  It  was,  in  fact,  not  so  much  an  elegant  and  picturesque  poem 
as  a  rhymed  encyclopasdia,  into  which  Jean  de  Meung  crammed  all  he  knew 
of  philosophy,  cosmographj^,  physics,  alchemy,  and  natural  history.  Jean  de 
Meung  was  not  innately  bad,  but  he  was  a  sceptic  and  a  free-thinker,  and 
very  fond  of  railing  at  the  powers  that  be.  Yet  his  poem,  though  ridiculous 
in  form  and  containing  much  that  was  heretical,  was  greatly  admired,  and 
looked  upon  as  the  masterpiece  of  French  poetry  in  the  fourteenth  century. 
Jean  de  Meung,  like  most  of  the  poets  who  wrote  in  the  Tongue  of  Oil,  was  the 
reverse  of  complimentary  to  the  fair  sex,  in  whose  favour  Guillamne  de  Lorris 
had  said  so  much.  But  he  did  not  express  the  general  ideas  of  the  time, 
and  the  "Eomance  of  the  Rose"  is  but  the  fanciful  creation  of  a  man  of 
letters — not  the  faithful  portrayal  of  the  manners  of  a  whole  epoch. 

Long  before  this  running  to  seed  of  French  poetry,  the  national  language 
of  France  had  spread  throughout  Europe.  It  was  spoken  and  written  in 
England,  Italy,  and  Gennany,  and  as  early  as  the  twelfth  century  many  of 
the  chansons  de  geste  and  romances  of  chivalry  were  translated  or  imitated  m 
the  latter  country.  In  fact,  it  was  beneath  the  double  inspiration  of  the 
poetical  works  of  the  South  and  of  the  North  of  France  that  began  the  golden 
age  of  the  literature  of  romance  and  of  chivalry  in  Germany  (Fig.  336).  In 
the  latter  part  of  the  twelfth  century  the  munber  of  Minnesingers  was  more 
than  three  hundred,  most  of  whom  composed  their  love-songs  in  the  soft  and 
gracef id  dialect  of  Swabia.  Henry  of  Waldeck  is  the  oldest  of  these  poets, 
who  imitated  the  troubadours ;  while  the  most  prolific  and  the  most  senti- 
mental was  Wolfram  of  Eschenbach.  To  the  same  epoch  belong  the  great 
German  epodes,  in  which  are  embodied  the  recollections  of  the  heroic  age  and 
the 'historical   traditions    of    Germanv.      The    "  Helden-Buch "   ("Book   of 


XATIOiXAL   PoIlTRV. 


43' 


Heroes")  and  the  "  Nibekmgeii-Lied"  ("  Song  of  the  Nibclungcn  "),  whieh  arc 
still  ijopvdar  in  Germany,  were  composed  at  the  beginning  of  the  thirteenth 
century  :  the  first,  it  is  said,  by  Wolfram  of  Eschenbach  (Fig.  337),  Henry  of 
Ofterdingen,  and  AValthcr  Vogelwcide ;  the  second  by  Conrad  of  Wartzbui^-, 


-r-^ 


■^tngy  (ft  tmr  cntfpvim^yn*  a^  nvev 


I!^n 


-M—  ■  ^— 


-t—p- 


Ua^  ift  C^S^'  ^>03g  ^^^  Jtyot  feewotfl 


fr^ 


-y^-JT 


-X- 


-vi- 


^jsctt'  mcxnfogfceg  X?ci?^-^Qttf  dtcre/ 


^  Imtenener-^ckr  wvt>  tt\)flr.0Mtte' 


-t    *.  r 


tji> 


H**'  ■*■■ 


-r^ 


=^ 


■  -»•     -  o^  ■ 


jmg  Ciid^'tecfeen-  fibf c^gn  tra^rrgti  i»at 


fjv. 


--t- 


yenr  tft>ttic]bi^Qn  x>m  ^vfctt  A^eii^n 


:3s: 


rcdteu- 


Fig.  337.— P'ranment  of  u  Poem  by  Woll'i-im  of  Eaehcnbach,  with  the  Notation  of  the  Thirteenth 
Century.— Published  by  Fetis,  after  Manuscript  in  the  Imperial  Library,  Vienna. 


or  by  Nicholas  Klingsor  of  Hungary  ;  but  this  statement  is  not  based  upon 
very  trustworthy  evidence.  The  end  of  this  famous  school  of  poetry 
coincides  with  tlic  fall  of  the  house  of  Swabia  (l'..'-J4). 

Italy  did  not  as  yet  pos.sess  a  national  literature  or  language,  for  in  the 


432  NATIONAL  POETRY. 


tliirteentli  century  there  was  scarcely  sucli  a  thing  as  Italian  prose- writing. 
Several  poems  had,  however,  been  written  in  the  Sicilian  dialect,  amongst  the 
first  composers  being  the  Emperor  Frederick  II. ;  his  chancellor,  Pierre  de  la 
Vigne,  to  whom  has  been  erroneously  attributed  the  invention  of  the  sonnet ; 
and  his  sons  Euzo,  King  of  Sardinia,  and  Manfred,  King  of  Naples.  It  was 
not  till  nearl}^  a  century  later  that  the  poets  of  the  Italian  peninsula  intro- 
duced into  their  native  language  the  various  forms  of  Romanic  versification, 
and  the  characteristics  of  Provencal  poetry,  in  the  shape  of  odes  (canzone),  of 
poetical  dialogues  (teiisons),  of  ballads,  of  sixtines,  of  lays,  and  of  tales.  These 
poets  imitated  not  only  the  rhyme  and  rhythm  of  the  troubadours,  but  some 
of  their  literary  qualities,  though  they  were  more  successful  in  copying  their 
defects.  It  is  easy  to  see  that  they  did  not  derive  their  inspiration  from  the 
living  fountains  of  antiquity,  though  the  names  of  Guido  Ghisleri  and  Guido 
Guinicelli,  of  Bologna,  and  of  the  two  Florentines,  Guido  Cavalcanti  and 
Guitone  of  Arezzo,  have  come  down  to  our  own  daj^ 

Dante,  the  true  creator  of  Italian  poetry,  was  also  a  native  of  Florence, 
and  he  was  born  there  of  patrician  parents  in  1265.  Nature  had  intended 
him  for  a  poet,  though  at  first  he  devoted  himself  to  the  study  of  various 
sciences.  Love  of  the  highest  and  most  elevated  kind  inspired  him  with  his 
first  verses.  He  was  not  yet  ten  years  of  age  when  he  met  Beatrix  Portinari, 
who  was  the  same  age  as  himself,  and  to  whom  he  addressed  many  tender  and 
pensive  pieces,  which  he  afterwards  incorporated  in  his  "  Vita  Nuova."  "When 
she  died  in  her  twenty-fifth  year  he  dedicated  to  her  memory  his  immortal 
"  Divine  Comedy,"  a  poem  at  once  religious  and  philosophical,  and  divided 
into  three  parts  :  Hell,  Purgatory,  and  Paradise.  This  vast  trilogy,  the  first 
part  of  which  is  in  every  way  the  best,  is  written  in  tiercets,  or  rhymed 
triplets ;  it  embraces  every  branch  of  human  knowledge,  and  presents  in 
allegorical  shape  a  striking  picture  of  the  history  of  the  age,  and  especially 
of  the  poet's  contemporaries.  Above  all  stands  the  pure  and  radiant  image 
of  Beatrix.  It  is  in  this  incomparable  poem  that  Dante,  by  a  judicious 
selection  of  Italian  dialects,  and  by  transforming  them  into  a  unique  and 
regular  type,  succeeded  in  establishing  upon  fixed  principles  the  literary 
language  of  his  country,  which,  though  simple,  clear,  and  powerful,  had 
hitherto  been  somewhat  rough  and  inchoate.  Dante  remains,  after  the  lapse 
of  six  centuries,  the  great  poet  of  Italy. 

None  of  the  other  nations  of  Europe  produced  any  poet  to  equal  him.     In 


JVA  TIONA  L   PUETRF. 


433 


Fig.  a;J8.— lliu  Musiiui;  ui  C'oi.lova,  luuiidL-d  liy  Abdiriiui  I  ,  King  of  the  Moors,  about  092. 

3    K 


434  NATIONAL  POETRY. 


Euglaucl,  where  the  Anglo-Saxon  tongue  had  in  the  end  become  merged  in 
the  Franco-JSTorman  dialect,  an  attempt  was  made  to  revive  the  national 
songs,  and  all  that  can  be  cited  in  the  way  of  English  poetry  is  a  translation 
of  the  "  Brut,"  by  Wace,  an  imitation  in  verse  of  the  Chronicle  of  Geoifroy 
of  Monmouth  by  Robert  of  Gloucester.  Spain,  where  the  Romanic  language 
had  become  naturalised  since  the  eleventh  century,  at  least  in  the  provinces 
not  invaded  by  the  Moors,  did  not  even  know  the  name  of  the  author  who 
wrote  that  poem  of  the  "  Cid  "  which  she  pointed  to  with  pride  as  the  first 
poetical  record  of  her  legendary  history  (Fig.  338).  Spanish  poets,  amongst 
whom  appear  Alfonso  II.,  King  of  Arragon,  and  Alfonso  XI.,  King  of  Castile, 
had  already  celebrated  in  a  language  which,  though  somewhat  rough  and 
coarse,  was  energetic  and  noble,  the  loftiest  sentiments  of  the  human  heart, 
especially  warlike  courage  and  love  of  cormtry.  The  imion  of  these  popular 
ballads  and  romances  formed  in  part  the  celebrated  collection  of  "Romancero." 

The  Minnesingers  did  not  survive  the  extinction  of  the  house  of  Swabia, 
which  had  always  accorded  them  the  highest  favours.  When  the  house  of 
Hapsburg  succeeded  the  Hohenstauffens  the  German  nobility  ceased  to  take 
any  interest  in  arts  and  poetry,  and  Germany  failed  for  a  time  to  produce  any 
poets.  But  towards  the  end  of  the  reign  of  Rudolph  I.  (1291)  the  middle 
classes  created  a  demand  for  singers,  and  the  Meistersingers  (masters  of  song), 
whose  compositions  answered  the  requirements  of  a  public  little  versed  in 
literature,  extended  their  jurisdiction  to  poetrj'  which,  from  sprightly  and 
high-spirited  as  it  was  in  the  time  of  the  Minnesingers,  became  staid  and 
measured,  not  to  say  tame  and  tedious.  The  poets  of  this  epoch  are  not 
worth  mentioning  by  name,  and  it  was  not  until  the  sixteenth  century  that 
the  Meistersingers  emerged  from  their  obscurity. 

Dante  gave  the  signal  for  the  literary  renaissance  in  Italy,  to  which 
Francis  Petrarch,  his  contemporary,  devoted  his  whole  life.  The  latter  was  bom 
at  Arezzo  in  1304,  and  died  at  Arqua,  near  Padua,  in  1374.  Thanks  to  the 
example  which  he  set,  classical  study  began  to  flourish  anew,  and  Virgil 
and  Horace  were  read  as  eagerly  as  thej^  had  been  during  the  reign  of 
Augustus.  Petrarch,  who  had  been  immersed  in  study  of  the  ancient  poets, 
attempted  at  first  to  imitate  them  in  Latin,  but  after  he  had  met  Laura  de 
Noves  at  Avignon  his  thoughts  were  solely  concentrated  upon  pleasing  her, 
and  he  wrote  his  "  Rhjones  "  and  his  "  Canzoni "  in  honour  of  her  who  had 
inspired  him  with  a  passion  as  delicate  and  pure  as  that  of  Dante  for  Beatrix. 


NATIONAL   POETRY. 


435 


Petrarch,  in  the  "  Canzoni,"  has  given  us  the  most  j^erfect  type  of  the  Italian 
ode,  and  while  he  rises  at  times  to  the  height  of  Pindar  and  Horace,  his 
poetical  outbursts  are  tempered  by  an  accent  of  sorrow  and  melancholy 
peculiar  to  himself.  He  did  not  lack  imitators,  but  none  of  them  came  up  to 
the  original ;  and  his  friend  Boccaccio,  who  had  perfected  Italian  prose,  wrote 


Fig.  339. — The  Horse  Pegasus.  "  Behold  a  Flj'ing  Hor^e,  call,  d  I'egasus,  and  several  Nobles, 
some  armed  and  some  without  arms,  of  all  conditions,  kings,  princes,  and  others,  which  lift  up 
their  hands  to  try  and  touch  the  said  Horse,  but  are  not  able  to  do  so." — Miniature  fi'om  the 
"  Enseignoment  de  \Taye  Noblesse." — Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century  (No.  11,049). — In 
the  Burgundy  Library,  Brussels. 


but  a  small  number  of  sonnets,  and  his  first  Italiaii  cpode,  the  "  Thcseide,"  is 
far  inferior  to  his  "Decamoronc." 

Almost  at  the  same  period,  a  Scotch  poet,  Archdeacon  of  Aberdeen, 
compo.sed  an  epic  poem  in  the  Scotch  dialect  upon  the  achievements  of 
Robert  Bruce,  the  liberator  of  Scotland.     Previously  to  this  the  lirst  of  (he 


436  NATIONAL  POETRY. 


epic  poems  whicli  appeared  in  Great  Britain,  tliere  had  been  written  a  few 
poems  concerning  the  wars  of  King  Edward  III.  against  Philip  of  Valois  and 
John  II.  of  France.  But  the  writers  are  not  to  be  compared  with  John 
Gower  and  Geoffrey  Chaucer,  who  had  taken  as  their  models  the  ancient  French 
trouveurs,  and  who  imitated  them  without  citing  their  authoritjr.  Gower,  in 
particular,  contributed  to  purify  the  language  of  poetry,  and  Chaucer,  in 
spite  of  his  imitations,  which  amount  to  plagiarism,  showed  that  he  was  the 
superior  in  point  of  style,  if  not  in  invention,  to  Marie  de  France,  Rutebeuf, 
William  de  Lorris,  and  Jean  de  Meung. 

The  literary  reputation  of  Jean  de  Meung  lasted  for  more  than  two 
centuries  after  his  death  (1320),  though  French  poetry  had  taken  another 
shape  to  suit  the  taste  of  the  ladies,  who,  by  becoming  queens  of  the  tourna- 
ments and  of  other  fetes  of  chivalry,  brought  about  a  sort  of  poetic  revival, 
not  only  in  France,  but  in  all  countries  where  French  was  the  language  of  the 
aristocracy.  The  satires  directed  more  especially  against  the  fair  sex  had  seen 
their  best  day,  and  though  Eustache  Deschamps  sought  to  revive  them  by 
paraphrasing,  in  his  "  Miroir  du  Mariage,"  Juvenal's  satire  upon  women, 
poetry  once  more  acquired  the  gallant  and  amorous  characteristics  which  it 
had  inherited  from  the  troubadours.  The  chronicler,  Jean  Froissart,  who  was 
at  one  time  clerk  to  Queen  Philippa  of  Hainault,  wife  of  King  Edward  III. 
of  England,  relates  that  he  "  narrated  to  her  interesting  stories  or  treatises  on 
love."  The  poems  of  Froissart,  written  in  the  Rouchi-French  dialect  of 
Valenciennes,  often  have  a  smack  of  the  troubadour  school  aird  of  WiUiam  de 
Lorrls's  "Romance  of  the  Rose."  These  poems,  which  run  smoothly  enough, 
but  which  are  wordy  and  colourless,  are  specially  interesting  from  an  auto- 
biographical point  of  view,  as  the  author  is  continuallj'  alluding  to  himself 
even  in  his  pastorals  and  his  nuptial  songs. 

The  professional  poets  who  succeeded  the  trouveurs  attempted  to  revive 
the  literature  of  chansons  de  geste  and  romances  of  chivahy,  which  they 
revised  and  adapted  to  modern  usage ;  but,  as  they  made  no  effort  to  abridge 
them,  these  poems  only  became,  under  their  treatment,  heavier  and  more 
prosy.  They  did  better  with  the  Chronicle  in  verse,  which  they  continued  to 
call  by  the  name  of  romance  even  when  they  were  treating  of  contemporary 
subjects,  as,  for  instance,  Cuvelier  in  the  "  Chronique  de  Bertrand  du 
Guesclin."  Moreover,  the  poetical  romances  of  the  fourteenth  century  are 
remarkable    for  their   immense   length    and    unbroken   dulness.     The  court 


NATIONAL   POETRY. 


437 


poetry  was  more  lively  and  graceful,  consisting  as  it  did  of  songs  and  ballads, 
of  virelays  and  roundelays.  Eustache  Descliamps,  who  wrote  an  "  Art  do 
Dictier,"  in  which  he  set  forth  the  rules  of  these  various  kinds  of  fashionable 
pnetry,  informs  us — but  his  statement  is  a  poetical  license — that  formerly  no 


Fig.  340.— Legend  of  the  "  Trois  llorts  et  des  Trois  Vifs,"  IVclry  of  the  Fourteunlli  Century.— 
From  a  Miniature  of  an  "  Antiphonalc." — Manuscript  of  the  Sixteenth  Century,  No.  5,644. — 
In  the  Burgundy  Library,  Brussels. 


one  ventured  to  write  poetry  of  this  kind  "unless  he  was  noble"  (Fig-  '3^9). 
This  same  liustache  Deschamjis,  a  warrior,  a  traveller,  and  a  magistrate, 
whose  writings  extend  over  more  than  eighty  years,  has  left  behind  him 
nearly  a  hundred  thousand  lines  of  poetry,  most  of  which  was  ballad.     lie 


438 


XATIOXAL  POETRY. 


applied  the  ballad  to  all  kinds  of  subjects,  and  with  him  it  sometimes  rises  to 
the  height  of  the  ode.  Deschamps  was  an  austere  and  serious  poet,  who 
showed  no  mercy  to  vice  and  to  abuses,  and  the  patriotic  spirit  of  his  poetry- 
comes  out  in  his  maledictions  against  the  English,  while  he  shows  himself  a 
man  of  feeling  by  his  regretful  allusions  to  the  sufferings  of  the  people.  It 
■«as  in  this  moui-nful  period  that  was  written  the  popular  poem  of  the 
"  Danse  Macabre  "  ("  Dance  of  Death"),  represented  in  Fig.  340.  Christina  de 
Pisan,  daughter  of  the  astrologer  of  Charles  Y.,  also  composed  a  number  of 
ballads  and  roundelays,  marked  with  the  impress  of  melancholy,  which  are  of 


Fig.  341. — Alain  Chartier  comforted  bj-  Hope. — Cameo  Miniatiue  from  the  "  Triumph  of  Hope," 
Allegory  on  the  PoUlical  Events  in  the  Eeign  of  Charles  YII. — Unpublished  Manuscript  of  the 
Sixteenth  Centurj-. — In  the  Library  of  H.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


more  merit  than  her  long  historical  and  moral  poems.  Most  of  them  testify 
to  her  love  for  France,  and  her  sentiments  are  noble  and  elevated,  though  the 
style  is  feeble  and  confused. 

There  was  a  steady  increase  ra  the  number  of  French  poets,  and  the  poetry 
itself,  especially  the  court  poetrj-,  continued  to  improve.  Alain  Chartier, 
whose  immense  reputation  was  made  at  the  French  court,  did  much  to  brmg 
about  this  progress.  His  "Breviary  of  the  Nobles "  was  a  sort  of  gospel  for 
the  nobility,  and  Jean  le  Masle  affirms  that  dui-iag  the  reign  of  Francois  I. 


NATIONAL  POETRY. 


439 


the  pages  and  young  gentlemen  of  the  court  were  compelled  to  learn  verses 
from  it  by  heart,  and  recite  them  regularly  every  day,  as  the  clergy  do  their 
breviary.     In  addition  to  the  "Book  of  the  Four  Ladies,"  which  contains 


Fig.  342.— The  Author  of  the  Poem  entitled  "  Le  Dubat  de  la  Noire  et  do  la  Tannee."— Miniature 
from  Maniiscriiit  of  the  Fifteenth  Century.— In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot, 
Paris. 


some  exquisite  pages  written  in  a  style  full  of  vigour  and  poesy,  Alain 
Chartier  composed  a  great  number  of  ballads,  love-sayings,  elegies,  and 
laments  (Fig.   341).     He  was  the  favourite  of  kings,   queens,   princes,  and 


440  NATIONAL  POETRY. 


nobles,  in  spite  of  Ilia  deformity  and  ugliness.  It  is  told  liow  the  Dauphiness 
Margaret  of  Scotland,  coming  upon  him  one  day  while  asleep,  kissed  him 
upon  the  mouth,  from  which,  says  Etienne  Pasquier,  "  issued  so  many  golden 
woids  and  virtuous  discourses."  He  died  in  1458,  at  the  age  of  seventy-five. 
One  of  his  puj)ils,  Dvdie  Charles  of  Orleans,  who,  taken  prisoner  at  Agincourt, 
remained  a  captive  in  England  for  the  rest  of  his  youth,  consoled  himself  by 
writing  French  and  English  verses,  most  of  them  gallant,  spiritual,  and 
pensive,  into  manj^  of  which  he  introduced  the  metaphysical  personages  of 
the  "  Romance  of  the  Rose."  He  had  around  him  in  London,  as  well  as  at 
his  Chateau  de  Blois  in  France,  a  sort  of  court  of  love  and  poetry,  the 
members  of  which  vied  with  each  other  in  composing  ballads  and  roundelays. 
Charles  of  Orleans  often  imitated  the  troubadours  and  the  Italian  poets — ■ 
Petrarch  am.ongst  others.  His  imagination  was  lively  and  gay,  he  indulged 
in  many  humorous  sallies,  and  his  soul  overflowed  with  true  and  generous 
feeling. 

The  court  poetry  led,  by  the  natural  effect  of  contradiction  and  strife,  to 
the  birth  of  a  poetry  which  was  of  truly  popular  origin.  One  of  the  first 
essays  in  this  new  kind  of  poetry,  which  emanated  from  the  genuine  emotions 
of  the  mind,  was,  hoAvever,  made  by  a  man  of  noble  birth,  Jean  Regnier, 
Seigneur  de  Guerchy,  who,  notwithstanding  his  birth  and  his  fortune,  did 
not  think  it  beneath  him  to  declare  his  sentiments  with  pathetic 
sincerity.  He  was  at  the  time  in  prison  at  Beauvais,  and  he  was 
about  to  be  tried  for  high  treason.  His  painful  position  made  him  a 
poet,  and,  as  a  preparation  for  death,  he  evoked  the  muse.  After  he  had 
bemoaned  his  "  Fortunes  et  Adversitez  "  he  became  resigned  to  his  fate,  and 
he  drew  up  a  will  in  rhyme,  half  earnest,  half  jocular,  which  was  doubtless 
the  type  taken  for  his  two  "  Testaments  "  by  Villon,  who,  though  he  does  not 
imitate  Regnier  word  for  word,  undoubtedly  had  his  work  before  him  when 
he  began  to  write  his  "  Petit  Testament "  in  the  Chatelet  prison,  where  he  was 
under  confinement  for  his  misdeeds.  Villon,  a  student  of  the  University  of 
Paris,  was  said  to  have  committed  a  murder  and  several  robberies,  and  after 
being  fortunate  enough  to  escape  the  gibbet,  he  again  was  guilty  of  some 
misdeed,  for  which  he  was  imprisoned  at  Meung.  It  was  there  that  he 
composed  his  best  work,  the  "  Grand  Testament,"  owing  to  which,  and  to 
the  intervention  of  Duke  Charles  of  Orleans,  he  obtained  a  commutation  of 
his  sentence.     This  work  is  a  singular  compound  of  wild  gaiety,  of  keen 


XATIOXAL   POETRY. 


441 


satire,  of  profound  sensibility,  of  calm  judgment,  and  of  pensive  melan- 
choly. Villon  is  beyond  all  doubt  a  great  poet,  at  once  natural  and 
indejjendent ;  he  is  distinguished  for  his  lively  imagination,  his  wit,  and  his 
good  feeling ;  and  though  the  form  of  his  poetry  has  become  obsolete,  the 


Fig.  S43.  —The  Castle  of  Loves. — Jliniature  iHken  from  the  "  Chamjiion  des  Dames." — Manuscript 
of  the  Fifteenth  Century  (No.  12,47C). — In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 

matter  itself  has  lost  none  of  its  freshness.  It  would  .seem  as  if  scapegraces 
were  poets  by  nature,  for  two  of  Villon's  companions,  Henri  Baudc  and 
Jourdain,  surnamcd  the  Unfortunate,  were  his  rivals  in  poetry  as  in  miscon- 
duct.    The  former  was  the  author  of  (he  "  Dcbat  do  la  Dame  et  de  I'Ecuycr," 

3  L 


442  NATIONAL   POETRY. 


and  of  nvimerous  other  clever  pieces,  wMle  tlie  latter  composed  the  "  Jardin  de 
Plaisance,"  which  contained  several  verses  written  by  his  friends  in  addition 
to  those  of  his  own  composing. 

The  example  set  by  Villon,  whose  popularity  was  greatest  amongst  the 
students  of  the  University  of  Paris,  led  to  the  publication  of  a  host  of  other 
satiric  poems,  mostly  by  anonymous  authors,  which  were  propagated  amongst 
the  middle  and  lower  classes  b}^  the  newly  discovered  printing-press.  This  is 
a  striking  proof  as  to  the  popularity  of  these  fugitive  pieces,  which  M. 
Anatole  de  Montaignon  and  Baron  James  de  Rothschild  are  endeavouring  to 
incor^jorate  into  one  vast  anthologj^  Amongst  these  are  the  "  Complaintes," 
"Dits,"  "Debats"  (Fig.  342),  "Monologues,"  "Testaments,"  "Sermons 
Joyeux,"  &c.,  in  which  the  sharpness  of  French  wit  shines  with  great 
brilliancj'.  It  is  certain  that  many  of  these  trenchant  and  comic  poems  were 
retailed  from  the  stage  by  strolling  players,  and  respectable  people  certainly 
looked  upon  them  as  scandalous,  and  took  care  not  to  read  them.  It  was 
accordingly  sought  to  counteract  the  bad  use  to  which  poetry  was  put,  and  La 
several  French  towns,  at  Toulouse,  Amiens,  and  Caen  amongst  others,  there 
were  instituted  "Floral  Games,"  "Chambers  of  Rhetoric,"  "  Puys,"  and 
"  Palinods,"  and  poets  were  appealed  to  to  devote  their  inspiration  to  the 
composition  of  edifying  and  moral  works.  These  poets  set  themselves  more 
especially  to  glorify  the  blessed  Virgin  and  her  Immaculate  Conception,  com- 
posing royal  songs,  ballads,  and  cantos,  which  were  awarded,  after  competition, 
different  prizes.  This  was  the  origin  of  the  academies  and  literary  societies 
in  France. 

The  French  poetical  school  united  a  great  variety  of  talents  in  the  fifteenth 
century.  Martin  Franc,  in  his  "Champion  des  Dames  "  (Fig.  343),  made  an 
attempt  to  revive  the  allegorical  stjde  of  Guillaume  de  Lorris  and  Jean  de 
Meung,  but  at  the  same  period  Olivier  Basselin,  master  ftiUer  of  Vire,  created 
the  "  Van  de  Vire,"  an  epicurean,  convivial,  and  libertine  song,  while  drinking 
his  Norman  cider.  These  songs  have  vmfortunately  only  reached  us  in  a 
modernised  and  disfigured  shape.  GuiUaume  Coquillart,  though  a  clerk  and 
ecclesiastical  doctor  at  Rheims,  gave  full  play  to  his  caustic  wit  and  free 
Gallic  humour  in  his  farcical  "  Monologues ; "  Martial  of  Auvergne  set  to 
rhyme  the  "Vigils  of  King  Charles  VII.,"  but  his  verse  is  rather  didl  and 
monotonous;  Jean  Meschinot,  of  Nantes,  set  to  poetry  the  "  Lettres  des 
Princes  "  for  the  Duke  of  Brittany,  to  whose  household  he  was  attached  as 


\ A  77  ox  A/.   POETRV 


4+3 


"ducal  poet ;  "  and  Andre  de  la  Vigne  and  Guillaume  Cretin  did  tlie  same 
for  the  royal  house  of  France.  But  the  deplorable  influence  of  the  poets  of 
the  court  of  ]5uro-undy  began  to  tell  with  fatal  effect  upon  French  poetry. 


Fig  344.— TliB  Vanity  ol  Jliiiiinii  TliiiiK.f.--Miiii  ituie  Ir.mi  tlie  Allegorical  I'oum,  "  Lu  Chcvalirr 
delibeie,"  upon  the  Death  of  Charles  the  Bold,  hy  Olivier  do  la  Murche. — Jlamiscriiit  of  the 
Fifteenth  Century,  No.  173. — In  the  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


Pierre  Michault,  Olivier  de  la  Marche  (Fig.  ^344),  Georges  Chastelain,  and 
Jean  Molinct  conceived  the  idea  of  creating  difficulties  of  rhythm,  metre,  and 
rhyme,  which    gave    flu'ii'    poetry  a    mongrel  and    barbar(jus    physiognomy. 


444 


NATIONAL   POETRY. 


Guillaume  Cretin  and  Jean  d'Auton,  both,  of  whom  were  chroniclers  of  King 
Louis  XII.,  went  even  further  in  this  direction,  and  Jean  Lemaire  (born  at 
Beiges,  in  Hainault),  to  whom  French  prosody  probably  owes  some  beneficial 
reforms,  had  great  difficidty  in  avoiding  these  bad  examples. 

Poetry  was  not  so  flourishing  in  other  parts  of  Europe.  In  Spain,  where 
the  works  of  the  Provencal  troubadours  were  still  imitated,  this  was  the  era  of 
gallant  poetry,  one  of  the  favourite  forms  for  a  poem  being  the  recloiidilla,  in 
which  the  writer  exhausted  every  resource  of  the  langviage  to  describe  his 
sentiments.  These  poems  were  in  especial  favour  at  the  court  of  John  IL, 
King  of  Castile,  and  amongst  the  most  gifted  composers  of  them  were  the 


AMU  Wn]nMtutS^t^ii^^f0f 


Fig.   345 Extract  from  the  "Cancionero"  of  Juan  Alfonso  de  Baena.  —  Original  Manuscript 

(Fifteenth  Century). — In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


Marquis  de  Villena  and  Juan  de  Mena  (Fig.  345).  Part  of  these  sentimental 
and  lackadaisical  poems,  to  which  no  less  than  a  himdred  and  forty  authors 
contributed,  were  collected  in  1516  into  a  book  entitled  "Cancionero  General." 
Portugal,  like  Spain,  sought  her  models  from  among  the  troubadours,  whom 
it  was  striven  to  imitate,  and  even  to  translate.  But  these  timid  efforts  ended 
in  the  invention  of  the  pastoral  romance,  which  represented  the  love-passages 
of  the  shepherds  and  shepherdesses.  This  artificial  st3'le,  which,  though 
sometimes  pleasing,  was  more  often  flat  and  tiresome,  was  destined  to  take  its 
place  in  the  litei-ature  of  all  lands,  and — so  great  is  the  force  of  habit — to  retain 


NATIONAL   POETRY. 


445 


it  for  a  long  time.  England,  however,  was  an  exception  to  the  rule ;  and 
since  the  death  of  Chaucer,  her  poets,  or  rather  her  versifiers,  had  confined 
themselves  to  imitating  the  "Romance  of  the  Rose,"  and  to  paraphrasing  the 
histories  of  mythology. 

In  Ital}%  after  the  death  of  Petrarch,  poetry  declined  in  sjiite  of  all  the 
efforts  made  by  Coluccio,  Burchiello,  and  Arispa  to  revive  it.  A  few  poems 
on  chivalry,  such  as  "Buovo  d'Antona,"  "La  Spagua,"  &c.,  might  be  passed 
over  without  notice,  had  they  not  led  up  to  the  brilliant  writings  of  Boiardo 


Fig.  346. — Portrait  of  Sannazar. — I'ac-simile,  on  a  reduced  Scale,  of  an  anonymous  Engraving  of 
the  Sixteenth  Century,  published  at  Rome  by  Ant.  Salamanca. — In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise 
Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


and  Ariosto.  Laurenzio  de'  Medici,  however,  the  gonfalonnier  of  the 
Florentine  Republic,  awoke  the  spirit  of  Italian  poetry  in  1469  by  his 
"  Canti  Carnavaleschi  "  ("Carnival  Songs  "),  and  he  was  seconded  in  his  eft'orts 
by  Politien  and  I'ulci,  though  the  former  was  one  of  the  most  fanatical 
partisans  of  the  ancient  classics.  Latin  poetry  had,  it  may  be  remarked, 
many  staunch  votaries  throughout  the  Middle  Age.s,  and  their  works,  consist- 
ing of  centos  of  Virgil,  Horace,  and  Lucan,  were  in  continuous  and  numerous 


446  NATIONAL  POETRY. 


circulation  tlirougliorit  Europe.  The  renaissance  of  ancient  literature  in  Italy 
during  tlie  fifteenth  centiirj^  told  mucli  in  favour  of  their  efforts  to  apply  the 
Iiatin  language  to  modern  subjects.  Thus  Sannazar  (Fig.  346),  surnamed 
the  Christian  Virgil,  excited  more  enthusiasm  with  his  poems,  "  De  Partu 
Virginis"  and  "Lamentatio  de  Morte  Christi,"  than  with  his  beautiful  poems 
written  in  Italian.  In  fact,  there  was  throughout  the  whole  of  learned 
Europe,  from  the  fifteenth  to  the  sixteenth  century,  a  Latin  poetry  con- 
sisting of  a  mass  of  works  of  the  most  varied  kind,  which  were  welcomed  and 
praised,  especially  by  the  most  highlj^  educated. 

Next  we  have  the  old  romances  of  chivalry,  appearing  in  the  shape  of 
poems  in  oitava  rima ;  the  romance  of  "  King  Arthur  of  Brittany  and  the 
Knights  of  the  Round  Table,"  "  Charlemagne  and  his  Twelve  Peers."  Here  we 
have  the  Italian  epode,  a  mixture  of  grave  and  gay.  Pulci  writes  his 
"Morgante  Maggiore,"  the  hero  of  which  is  a  great  jester;  Bello,  called  the 
Blind  Man  of  Ferrara,  writes  his  "  Mambriano,"  who  pursues  Renaud  de 
Montauban  amidst  a  series  of  the  most  fanciful  and  burlesque  adventures. 
Boiardo  also  seeks  for  inspiration  in  the  Chronicle  of  Turjoin,  and  depicts 
the  court  of  Charlemagne  in  his  "  Orlando  Innamorato,"  which  would  be  a 
masterpiece  of  the  poet's  style,  were  it  not  so  curt  and  so  affected.  Ludovico 
Ariosto,  called  the  Ariosto  (Fig.  347),  born  at  Peggio  in  1474,  woidd  not 
undertake  to  rewrite  the  epic  poem  of  Boiardo,  but  he  continued  it  with  the 
"  Orlando  Furioso,"  one  of  the  most  remarkable  prodiictions  of  picturesque 
poetry,  and  far  before  the  "  Orlando  Innamorato."  Ariosto's  poem  combines 
every  charm — variety  of  imagination,  descriptive  power,  grace  and  elegance 
of  style,  and  powerful  dramatic  incident.  Like  Homer,  Ariosto  was  surnamed 
the  Divine,  and  his  poem  remains  the  type  of  the  Romanic  epode,  as  the 
Iliad  was  the  masterpiece  of  the  heroic  epode. 

Ariosto,  in  his  "  Capitoli  Amorosi "  and  his  many  light  pieces  of  poetry, 
preserved  his  superiority  over  his  numerous  imitators,  none  of  whom  ventured 
to  compete  with  him  in  epic  poetry.  Berni  rewrote  the  "  Orlando  Inna- 
morato," and  he  had  perfected  the  burlesque  mode  of  composition,  and  given 
his  name  to  what  was  called  Bcritesque  poetry.  Yet  Petrarch  had  more  than 
a  hundred  imitators,  none  of  whom  could  come  up  or  near  to  their  model. 
Didactic  poetry  spent  itself  in  pale  imitations  of  Virgil  and  of  Juvenal,  and 
the  poem  of  the  "  Bees  "  is  a  literal  translation  of  the  fourth  book  of  the 
Georgics,  of    which  Alamanni  jncscnitcd  a  mere    counterfeit  in  the  "  Colti- 


All  TIOXA  L   POETRl '. 


447 


vazione."  Trissino  eucleavoured  to  compose  an  epic  poem  upon  the  deliver- 
ance of  Italy  from  the  Goths,  and  he  used  blank  verse,  which  was  not  very 
well  received  by  the  fervent  admirers  of  the  ottava  rima.  Italian  poetry 
had  not,  therefore,  an}'  influence  upon  Sjjanish  poetry,  which  was  devoted 
almost  entirely  to  works  touching  upon  love  and  gallantry.  Boscan  Almo- 
gaver  and  Garcilaso  de  la  Yega  were  very  successful  in  shaping  their 
inspirations  into  the  comjjass  of  the  sonnet ;  and  while  the  latter  was  bringing 
the  pastoral  into  fashion,  Diego  llurtad  j  de  Mendoza  wrote  epistles  in  imita- 


Flg.  347. — Portrait  of  Ariosto. — Reduced  Fac-simile  of  an  anonymous  Engra%'ing  of  the  Sixteenth 
Centurj-,  piihlished  at  Rome  by  Ant.  Salamanca — In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Finniu- 
Didot,  Paris. 


tion  of  Horace.     The  pastoral  was  always  the  favourite  style  of  poetry  with 
the  Portuguese,  and  Ribeiro  surpassed  all  his  predecessors  in  this  style. 

The  breath  of  the  Italian  renaissance  was  not  felt  in  France  till  after 
the  reigns  of  Charles  VIII.  and  Louis  XII.  The  ])oetry  which  was  then  in 
greatest  favour  at  the  court  was  still  tainted  with  Flemish  influence,  and 
people  admired  the  jingle  of  such  rhymes  as  fraterniisees,  brkies,  equicoquecs, 


448  NATIONAL  POETRY. 

coKrounees,  hatelecs,  which  Guillaume  Cretin  made  use  of  with  all  the  cunning 
of  a  juggler.  The  reminiscences  of  the  "  Romance  of  the  Rose  "  were  revived 
b)'  Gringore's  "Chateau  de  Labour,"  by  Clement  Marot's  "Temple  de 
Cupidon,"  by  the  "Loups  Ravissants,"  and  by  the  "Espinette  du  Jeune 
Prince  conquerant  le  Royaume  de  Bonne  Renommee."  Jean  Marot  and 
Octavian  de  St.  Gelais  put  into  verse  the  diary  of  the  expeditions  of 
Charles  VIII.  and  Louis  XII.  The  popular  muse  inspired  only  two  poets — 
Roger  de  Collerie  and  Pierre  Gringore,  who  in  every  branch  of  poetry 
preserved  the  stamp  of  his  proverbial  and  witty  style.  The  epoch  of 
Francois  I.  seemed  to  renew  the  language,  if  not  the  form,  of  poetry,  by 
imposing  upon  the  writer  who  aimed  at  being  read  a  frank,  simple,  and 
sprightly  style.  Clement  Marot  was  the  real  restorer  of  this  eminently 
French  style.  He  had  not  the  genius  to  write  great  works,  and  he  was  too 
buoj'ant  and  too  Gallic  to  think  of  composing  long  poems  which  no  one 
would  have  read.  He  composed  mereljr  roundelaj^s,  epistles,  elegies,  chants 
royal,  ballads,  epigrams,  and  madrigals,  which  latter  were  as  yet  called 
epigrams  also,  as  in  the  Greek  anthology.  It  was  in  epigram  that  Clement 
Marot  was  so  much  the  superior  of  all  other  poets,  and  for  fifteen  years  his 
delicate,  gracefid,  and  witty  stj'le  found  him  numberless  admirers  and 
imitators  ;  but  when  he  placed  his  services  at  the  disposal  of  the  Reformed 
Church,  and,  at  the  request  of  Calvin,  translated  into  hjmms  the  Psalms 
of  David,  he  lost  all  his  merits  as  a  poet.  His  school,  which  numbered 
a  few  charming  versifiers — Bonaventure  des  Periers,  Victor  Brodeau,  and 
Charles  Fontaine  amongst  others — remained  in  favour  with  the  court,  thanks 
to  Francois  L,  the  friend  and  pupil  of  Marot.  It  was  that  monarch  who 
conceived  the  idea  of  translating  into  French  verse  all  the  Greek  and  Latin 
poets  :  Homer,  by  Hugues  Salel ;  Ovid,  by  Clement  Marot ;  Virgil,  by  Michael 
of  Tours  and  Octavian  de  St.  Gelais ;  and  Horace,  by  Francois  Habert. 
The  poetry  of  Mellin  de  St.  Gelais,  who  was  looked  upon  as  the  only  rival  of 
Marot,  already  showed  signs  of  being  imitated  from  the  Italian,  and  though 
the  ideas  were  ingenious  and  correct,  the  style  was  a  mixture  of  pretentious 
affectation  and  of  Italian  concetti. 

The  Reformation,  it  must  be  said,  was  everywhere  fatal  to  language  and 
literature,  and  it  dealt  a  specially  severe  blow  at  Gennan  poetry.  Hans  Sack, 
the  Nuremberg  shoemaker,  is  perhaps  the  onlj^  poet  who,  trj-ing  his  hand  at  all 
branches  of  poetrj^,  ventured  to  brave  the  Lutheran  intolerance.    In  England, 


NATIONAL   POETRV.  449 


wliitlier  Protestantism  had  not  yet  reached,  several  poets  of  society  were  in 
great  favour :  William  Dunbar,  with  his  allegorical  poem  of  the  "  Golden 
Buckler,"  and  David  Lindsay  and  Wyatt,  with  their  satires  ;  while  Lord 
Surrey  had  introduced  blank  verse  into  English  poetrj',  and  translated  the 
jEneid.  In  Itah',  too,  which  the  Eeformation  never  reached,  the  school  of 
Petrarch  seemed  to  spring  into  renewed  life.  Bembo  was  the  instigator  of 
this  resurrection  of  amorous  poetry  ;  for  though  his  own  imitations  of  Petrarch 
were  but  feeble,  the  Petrarchists — or  Bembists,  as  they  ought  rather  to  be 
called— responded  to  his  appeal  to  the  number  of  five  or  six  hundred.  Other 
poets,  though  not  despising  the  sonnets  of  Petrarch,  endeavoured  to  embody 
different  subjects  in  new  foiTas.  Angelo  de  Costanzo  and  Camillo  Peregrini 
returned  to  Ij'ric  j^oetrj',  Bernardino  Balbi  to  didactic  poetry,  and  Benti- 
vogho  and  Pietro  Aretino  to  satirical  poetry.  Torquato  Tasso,  the  son  of 
Bernardino  Tasso,  who  obtained  great  celebrity  for  his  poem  of  chivahy  uj)on 
the  "Amadis,"  undertook  to  write  the  great  epic  poem  of  modern  times, 
"Jerusalem  Delivered."  This  is  a  true  epic  poem,  based,  not  like  that  of 
Virgil,  upon  the  fabled  traditions  of  the  siege  of  Troy,  but  upon  the  positive, 
though  almost  miraculous,  facts  appertaining  to  the  history  of  the  Middle 
Ages.  Tasso  is  not  inferior  to  Homer :  his  poem  is  equal  to  the  Iliad. 
But  his  style — noble,  poetical,  and  admirable  as  it  is — is  often  sjDoilt  by  traits 
of  bad  taste  and  by  insijjid  play  upon  words.  Yet  we  may  say  that  the  glory 
of  Tasso  lighted  up  the  sixteenth  century. 

After  this  every  nation  was  desirous  of  having  its  epic  poem.  SjDain,  which 
possessed  several  good  cancione  writers,  such  as  Herrera,  Castillejo,  and  Lope 
de  Vega,  found  Alonzo  de  Ercilla  to  write  an  epic  poem  called  "  Araucana" 
upon  the  conquest  of  Chili  b}'  his  fellow-countrymen ;  but  endless  digressions 
and  useless  ej^isodes  marred  the  brilliant  st3'le  and  descriptions  contained  in 
this  work.  Portugal  was  more  fortunate ;  for  Camoens,  who  chose  for  the 
subject  of  his  national  epode  the  voyage  of  Vasco  de  Gama,  which  he  con- 
nected with  the  general  history  of  his  country,  wrote  his  poem  of  "  Lusiades  " 
upon  the  very  spots  still  redolent  of  his  hero.  The  defects  of  Camoens  in  the 
arrangement  of  his  story  and  in  his  choice  of  the  marvellous  are  only  too 
patent,  but  the  grandeur  of  his  ideas  attracts  and  delights  the  reader,  while 
his  abundant  and  harmonious  style  lends  itself  well  to  the  dramatic  character 
of  the  scenes  and  the  highly  coloured  descriptions  of  a  work  which  in  some 
passages  reaches  the  sublime.   Camoens  died  in  obscurity  and  extreine  poverty. 

3  M 


450  NATIONAL  POETRY. 

Germany  seemed  to  have  become  imj)enetrable  to  the  rays  of  poetry,  but 
the  Northern  peoples  began  to  feel  their  influence.  The  Danes  possessed  in 
Peter  Laland  a  national  poet  in  the  first  years  of  the  sixteenth  century,  while, 
previously  to  this,  the  Swedes  had  had  Eric  Ola'i,  who  set  their  chronicles  to 
rhyme.  Poland,  whose  national  poetry  does  not  date  fvirther  back  than  the 
fifteenth  centurj^,  possessed  a  certain  nmnber  of  poets  whose  very  names  were 
scarcely  kno^vn  to  the  rest  of  Europe;  amongst  others,  Nicholas  Eey  de 
Naglovice  and  Jean  Kochanowski,  called  the  Prince  of  Poets,  who  formed 
a  friendshiiJ  with  Eonsard  while  stajang  in  Paris.  In  Holland  Dirk 
Koornhert  created  national  poetry,  and,  following  upon  a  few  translators 
of  the  Psalms,  Poemer  Wisscher  and  Spiegel  laid  down  the  principles  of 
versification.  It  was  in  England  that  the  poetical  movement  was  the  most 
brilliant  and  the  most  active.  Spenser  invented  a  new  kind  of  pastoral,  in 
which  the  shepherds  spoke  in  the  language  of  shepherds  instead  of  in  that 
of  courtiers.  His  allegorical  poem,  the  "  Faery  Queen,"  had  an  even  greater 
success  than  the  "  Shepherd's  Calendar."  His  contemporaries,  Sidney, 
Raleigh,  Marlowe,  and  Green  Watson,  composed  light  poetry  full  of 
simplicity  and  grace.  Robert  Southwell,  Samuel  Daniel,  and  John  Davies 
drew  their  inspirations  from  religion  and  philosophy ;  while,  at  the  close  of 
the  century,  there  appeared  two  poems,  "  Venus  and  Adonis  "  and  the  "  Rape 
of  Lucretia,"  the  author  of  which  was  the  immortal  Shakspere. 

The  second  half  of  the  sixteenth  century  witnessed  a  complete  meta- 
morphosis of  poetry  iu  France.  A  few  poets  had  remained  true  to  the  school 
of  Clement  Marot,  who  died  in  poverty  abroad.  Marguerite  de  Valois, 
Queen  of  Navarre,  would  have  been  one  of  the  most  charming  types  of  this 
school,  if  her  attachment  to  the  doctrines  of  the  Reformation  had  not  clouded 
her  ideas  and  depressed  her  style  (Fig.  348).  Two  other  female  poets 
retarded  the  decadence  of  Marotisiii,  viz.  two  women  of  Lyons — Pernette  du 
Guillet  and  Louise  Labe,  the  latter  of  whom  was  the  mysterious  muse  of 
Olivier  de  Magnj'.  Etienne  Forcadel  composed  some  neat  epigrams  and 
clever  epistles;  Peletier  of  Le  Mans,  who  had  an  unfortunate  mania  for 
constructing  a  new  way  of  spelling,  wrote  his  Poetical  Works  in  plain  and 
excellent  French ;  while  Maurice  Sceve,  in  his  poem  "  Delie,"  followed  the 
teaching  given  him  by  his  friend  Clement  Marot.  There  is  no  need  to  say 
anything  about  such  feeble  poets  as  Artus  Desire,  Guillaume  des  Autels, 
and  Barthelemy  Aneau,  whose  compositions  are  involved  and  obscure.     By 


NATIONAL  POETRV. 


45 1 


this  time  the  Italian  influence  was  everywhere  apparent,  and  it  was  Joachim 
du  Bellay  who  gave  the  signal  for  the  literary  revolution,  by  advising  his 
youthfid  rivals  to  imitate  the  Greeks  and  the  Romans,  while  declaring 
himself  a  devoted  partisan  of  the  French  language,  which  was  being 
sacrificed  to  the  Italian.  The  poets  who  responded  to  his  appeal  overshot 
the  mark  without  hitting  it,  and  were  onlj'  inaccurate  translators  of  the 
ancient  classics,  instead  of  imitating  it  with  intelligence  and  fidelitj'. 

It  was  in  a  small  Paris  college  that  Joacliim  du  BcUav  formed,  under  the 


Fig.  348. — Portrait  of  Marguerite  de  Valois,  Queen  of  Navarre,  after  a  Pencil- Drawing  of  the 
Time. — Tn  the  Museum  of  the  Louvre,  Paria. 


eyes  of  his  professor  of  humanities,  Jean  Daurat,  the  poetical  association, 
consisting  of  seven  members,  which  was  called  the  Pleiad.  These  seven 
poets  were  Baif,  Du  Bellay,  Remy  BeUeau,  J.  Daurat,  Jodelle,  Ponthus  de 
Thyard,  and  Ronsard  (Figs.  349  to  355),  who  was  proclaimed  unanimously 
their  supreme  chief.  For  half  a  century  Pierre  Ronsard  remained  the  master 
of  French  poetry.  While  still  a  youth  ho  had  formed  tlie  project  of  writing 
a  national  epic  poem,  to  be  called  the  "  Franciadc,"  upon  the  model  of 
Virgil's  ^neid,  but    he    only  published  four  cantos    of  this    epode,  -which 


4SZ 


NATIONAL  POETRY, 


was  to  have  liad  twenty-four.  His  Francus,  son  of  Hector,  was  not,  in 
truth,  worthy  to  figure  by  the  side  of  ^neas,  son  of  Priam.  Ronsard  was 
called  the  Pindar  of  France,  though  he  was  utterly  lacking  in  lyrical  inspira- 
tion.    His  odes,  with  their  accumulation  of  strophes  and  antistrophes,  were 


Fig.  349.— Portrait  of         Fig.  3.50.— Portrait  of  J.  du  Bellay.      Fig.  3.51.— Portrait  of  Eemy 
Baif.  Belleau. 

Fac-simile  of  Engravings  by  Leonard  Gaultier,  from  the  Series  known  as  "  Chronologie  collee." 
In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


but  feeble  counterfeits  of  the  odes  of  Pindar ;  his  language,  OA^erladen  with 
Greek  and  Latin  words,  is  far  too  hyperbolic,  and  is  obscured  by  the  array  of 
mythological  lore.     Yet  he  possessed  in  the  highest  degree  nobility  of  style 


Fig.  3.52.— Portrait  of 
J.  Daurat. 


Fig.  353.— Portrait  of  Jodelle. 


Fig.  354.  Portrait  of 
P.  Ronsard. 


Fac-simile  of  Engravings  by  Leonard  Gaultier,  from  the  Series  known  as  "  Chronologie  collee." 
In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


and  harmony  of  rhythm,  and  he  imitated  with  success  both  Horace  and 
Theocritus ;  but  he  distinguished  himself  the  most  in  his  imitations  of 
Anacreon,    whose   writings   had    just   been    exhumed    by    Henri    Estieune. 


NATIONAL   POETRY. 


453 


Ronsard  was,  beyond  all  doubt,  a  poet ;  but  his  writings  are  tedious,  thougli 
here  and  there  lighted  up  by  some  trait  of  vigour  and  brilliancy.  His 
reputation  was  a  European  one,  and  Mary  Stuart,  who  beguiled  the  hours 
of  her  captivity  by  reading  his  works,  sent  him  a  Parnassus  in  solid  silver, 
with  the  inscription,  "A  Ronsard,  1' Apollo  de  la  source  des  Muses." 

The  most  distinguished  poet  of  the  Pleiad  was  miquestionably  Joachim 
du  Bellay,  who  founded  it.  "  His  language,"  remarks  the  critic  Gerusez, 
"is  a  perfected  imitation  of  that  of  Marot,  with  more  attention  as  to  the 
copying  of  Latin  or  Italian."     Du  Bellay  had  good  taste,  which  was  a  point 


Fig.  355. — Portrait  of  Ponthus  de  Thyard, — Reduced  Fao-simile  of  the  Engraving  of  Thomas  de 
Leu. — In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paria. 


in  which  Ronsard  and  the  rest  of  the  Pleiad  were  lacking ;  and  ho  also 
possessed  sensibility  and  elevation  of  feeling,  and  deserved  the  surname  of 
the  French  Ovid.  The  remainder  were  very  inferior  to  him  :  Baif  was  heavy, 
pretentious,  and  pedantic  ;  Remy  Belleau,  surnamed  the  gcntil  Belleaii,  had 
nothing  pedantic  about  him,  and  did  not  attempt  to  write  anything  but  pretty 
verses ;  Jodelle,  who  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Theatre  in  France,  wrote 
a  mixture  of  French  and  Greek  ;  Ponthus  de  Thyard,  who  wrote  more  prose 
than  verse,  got  a  bishopric  out  of  the  former ;  while  Daurat  composed  only 
a  few  French  verses,  all  the  rest  of  his  works  being  in  Greek  and   Tiatiu. 


45+  NATIONAL  POETRY. 


But  around  the  Pleiad  there  were  several  poets  superior  to  those  who  com- 
posed it:  Berenger  de  la  Tour,  the  best  bucolic  poet  of  the  age,  author 
of  the  "  Siecle  d'Or  "  and  the  "  Amie  Rustique  ;  "  Olivier  de  Magnj^,  a  great 
lyric  poet,  as  may  be  gathered  from  his  "Amours,"  "  Odes,"  "Soupirs,"  and 
"  Gaietes  ; "  Amadis  Jamyn,  Ronsard's  favourite  pupil,  and  the  writer  of 
several  charming  pieces  which  haA^e  more  life  in  them  than  those  of  his 
master ;  and  Guillaume  du  Bartas,  the  creator  of  descriptive  poetry,  who,  in 
his  poem  upon  the  creation  of  the  world,  entitled  "  La  Semaine,"  reached 
almost  at  once  the  sublime  and  the  ridiculous. 

It  is  most  wonderful  that  France,  amidst  her  civil  and  religious  wars, 
and  the  terrible  disorder  which  prevailed  during  the  reigns  of  Charles  IX. 
and  Henri  III.,  should  have  produced  such  a  number  of  poets  that  it  is 
impossible  to  name  them  all.  Everybody  wrote  and  admired  poetry  at  the 
court  of  the  Yalois — kings,  princes,  nobles,  and  ladies  alike.  Every  kind 
of  poetry — ambitious  and  familiar,  amorous  and  melancholy — was  repre- 
sented by  one  or  more  works  of  merit,  and  we  can  only  afford  space  to  mention 
the  bare  names  of  a  few  writers  :  Marc-Claude  de  Buttet,  a  native  of  Savoy  ; 
Flaminio  de  Birague,  an  Italian  who  had  been  naturalised  French  ;  See  vole 
de  St.  Marthe,  a  Loudunois  gentleman;  Madame  des  Roches,  of  Poitiers; 
Guillaume  Belliard,  of  Blois ;  Jean  Passerat ;  Etienne  Pasquier,  &c.  A 
special  mention  must,  however,  be  made  of  Philippe  Desportes,  who  excelled 
in  gallant  poetry ;  of  Jean  Bertaut,  distinguished  in  the  same  way ;  of  Jean 
and  Jacques  de  la  Taille,  better  known  as  dramatic  poets ;  and  lastly,  of 
Agrippa  d'Aubigne,  who  may  be  termed  the  Petronius  and  Juvenal  of  the 
sixteenth  century. 

But  Malherbe,  who  had  just  been  born,  was  destined,  in  the  course  of  his 
attacks  upon  the  Ronsard  school,  to  form  the  new  French  poetics,  of  which 
his  odes  represent  the  most  perfect  model  and  style. 


CHRONICLES,  HISTORIES,  MEMOIRS. 


First  Historians  of  the  Church. — The  Last  Latin  and  Greek  Historians. — Latin  Chronicles : 
Marius,  Cassiodorus,  Jornandes. — Gregory  of  Tours. — Fredegaire. — Monastic  Chronicles.— 
Chronicles  from  the  Eighth  to  the  Eleventh  Century. — Historians  of  the  Crusades. — Historians 
of  Foreign  Countries. — Latin  Chronicles  of  the  Ahbey  of  St.  Denis. — Chronicles  in  Rhyme. — 

Early  French  Chronicles. — Villehardouin. — The  Sire  de  Joinville Chronicles  of  St.  Denis. 

— Froissart. — Monstrelet.— Chaatellain. — French  Translations  of  the  Ancient  Historians. — 
Library  of  Charles  V. — Chroniclers  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — Historians  of  the  Court  of 
Burgundy. — Private  Chronicles  and  Lives  of  Illustrious  Men. — Personal  Memoirs. — Histories 
of  France  in  the  Sixteenth  Century. 


lOIsG  before  the  invasions  of  the  Barbariiin?  the 
countless  books  of  history  written  h\  Greek 
and  Latin  authors  concerning  the  annals  of 
the  ancient  peoples  had  been  falling  into 
disfavour.  Even  the  best  of  them  were  little 
read,  for  the  Christians  felt  but  .slight  interest 
in  these  pagan  narratives,  and  this  is  why 
works  relating  to  the  history  of  antiquity 
were  already  so  scarce. 

The  Church,  however,  inspired  sonic  new 
historians,  who  set  to  write  its  early  annals.  Eu.sebius,  Bishop  of  Ca?.sarca, 
during  the  reign  of  Constantine,  composed  in  Greek  an  Ecclesitistical  History 
in  ten  books,  from  the  birth  of  Christ  to  the  death  of  Liciniu.s  (-324) ;  and 
Paulus  Orosius,  a  di.sciple  of  St.  Augustine,  composed  in  Latin,  during  the 
early  part  of  the  fifth  century,  seven  books  of  History  against  the  I'agans 
("Historiaruni  adversus  Paganos  Libri  VII."),  into  which  ho  introduced 
many  interesting  popular  traditions,  ntirrating  the  history  of  the  world  from 
the  time  of  Adam  to  the  year  ■ild  a.d.  A  few  Latin  writers  still  strove,  as 
late  as  the  fourth  century,  to  write  hi.story  after  the  fashion  of  Li  vy,  Tacitus,  and 
Suetonius  ;  and  Aurelius  Victor,  surnamed  Africanus,  wrote  at  Home,  of  which 


456  CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


city  he  was  prefect,  a  Historj^  of  the  Emperors,  beginning  from  Augustus, 
and  a  summary  treatise  of  the  iUustrious  men  of  Rome  ("  De  Yiris  lUustribus 
Urbis  Iloma3  "),  which  has  often  been  attributed  to  Pliny  the  younger  and 
Cornelius  Nepos.  Flavius  Eutropius,  who  was  a  soldier  and  a  statesman,  com- 
piled an  Abridgment  of  Roman  History  ("Breviarium  Rerum  Romanarum") 
in  ten  books,  from  the  foundation  of  Rome  to  the  reign  of  the  Emperor  Valens  ; 
and  Ammianus  Marcellinus,  a  native  of  Antioch,  who  took  part  in  the  wars 
waged  by  the  Emperor  Julian  in  Gaul  and  Germany,  completed  in  after  life 
an  immense  History  of  the  Roman  Emperors,  from  the  reign  of  Nerva  to  that 
of  Valentinianus,  but  the  first  thirteen  books  of  which  are  lost.  This  History, 
though  its  style  is  uncouth,  forms  a  brilliant  termination  to  the  series  of  Latin 
histories  of  the  empire. 

But  in  the  fifth  century,  while  the  barbarian  hordes  were  pouring  in  upon 
the  Old  World  by  way  of  Spain,  Gaul,  and  Italy,  where  they  fovmded  fresh 
states,  the  empire  of  the  East  became  the  asylum  for  a  new  historic  school, 
Avhich  grew  remarkable  for  a  number  of  great  works  emanating  from 
Christian  thought,  and  intended  to  celebrate  the  triumph  of  the  Christian 
religion.  Philostorgius  wrote  in  Greek  a  general  History  of  the  Church, 
which  is  only  known  to  us  by  the  abridgment  of  it  made  by  Photius ;  Socrates 
continued  the  Ecclesiastical  History  of  Eusebius  from  the  year  306  to  439  ; 
Sozomen,  born  in  Palestine,  compiled  an  excellent  History  of  the  Church, 
in  nine  books,  from  the  year  324  to  439 ;  and  Theodoret,  Bishop  of  Syria, 
also  edited  an  Ecclesiastical  History,  in  five  books,  of  the  same  period.  It 
would  appear  as  if  the  genius  of  history  was  concentrated  upon  the  annals  of 
the  Church,  when  arose  quarrels  and  disputes  as  keen  as  those  which  were 
formerly  provoked  by  politics  alone.  This  new  kind  of  history  seems  better 
adapted  to  Greek  literature,  though  three  or  four  of  the  Latin  writers  appear 
to  have  preserved  the  best  traditions  of  their  language.  The  priest  Rufinus, 
who  had  been  intimate  with  St.  Jerome,  and  who  had  lived  in  retirement  in 
Sicily,  where  he  died  (410),  translated  the  History  of  Eusebius  into  passable 
Latin ;  Sulpicivis  Severus,  his  contemporarj',  a  more  elegant  and  correct 
writer,  although  born  in  Aquitaine,  and  who  never  left  Gaul,  where  he  had 
followed  the  apostleship  of  St.  Martin,  composed  an  Abridgment  of  Sacred 
History  from  the  creation  of  the  world  to  the  year  410  a.d.,  and  this  excellent 
book  earned  the  surname  of  the  Christian  Sallust. 

The  Greek  language,  the  existence  of  which  was  henceforward  inseparable 


BATTLE  OF   JONATHAN  AGAINST  BACCIDE. 


Embattled  castle  and  military  uniforms  of  the  xv""  century.  Miniature  ol  J.  Fouquet,  taken  from  the 
History  of  the  Jews.  By  Josephus,  translated  from  the  Greek  into  French.  M.  S.  of  the  xv""  century. 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS.  457 


from  the  empire  of  the  East,  was  perjjetuated,  with  most  of  its  essential 
qualities,  in  a  mass  of  historical  works  written  in  Greek,  down  to  the  capture 
of  Constantinople  by  Mahomet  II. ;  but  the  Latin  language,  on  the  contrary, 
had  been  subjected  to  the  inevitable  mixture  of  the  national  idioms  of  all  the 
barbaric  peoples  which  had  collected  in  different  parts  of  the  Roman  empire. 
The  Latin  language,  though  more  and  more  corrupted  and  changed,  continued 
none  the  less  to  be  the  official  language  of  the  clergy  and  of  the  higher  civil 
administration.  Nothing  but  Latin  was  spoken  at  the  court  of  Odoacer,  King 
of  the  Heruli,  and  at  the  court  of  Theodoric,  King  of  the  Goths.  Thus  books 
of  political  rather  than  of  religious  history  continued  to  be  written  in  Latin. 
It  was  in  this  semi-barbarous  tongue  that  the  Western  historians  of  the  sixth 
and  seventh  centuries  compiled  their  Chronicles,  while  the  Greek  historians 
were  publishing  excellent  Histories  after  the  stj'le  of  Polybius  and  Dion 
Cassius :  Agathias  the  Scholastic,  the  History  of  the  Reign  of  Justinian  ; 
Procopius  of  Caesarea,  secretary  to  Belisarius,  the  History  of  his  Time  ; 
Theophylactus  Simocatta,  the  History  of  the  Emjoeror  Maurice,  &c. 

The  Latin  Chronicles,  comjjosed  during  this  dreary  epoch  of  the  Middle 
Ages,  are  none  the  less  valuable  and  interesting.  The  most  ancient  of  them 
relates  to  France,  or  rather  to  the  part  of  Gaul  occupied  by  the  Franks  :  that, 
of  Marius  of  Autun,  Bishop  of  Avenche,  in  Helvetia.  It  begins  with  the 
reign  of  Avitus  in  455,  and  temiiuates  in  581 :  written  in  a  clear  and  simple 
style,  it  relates  more  especially  to  the  reign  of  Gontran,  King  of  Burgundy, 
and  contains  some  accurate  information  as  to  the  geography  of  Gaul.  It  had 
been  written  to  serve  as  a  sequel  to  the  Abridgment  of  the  Universal  History 
compiled  by  Prosper  of  Aquitaine,  and  is  in  consequence  dry  and  concise,  like 
most  Chronicles  of  the  time.  Cassiodorus,  the  minister  of  King  Theodoric, 
gave  freer  scojie  to  his  rhetoric  in  a  voluminous  History  of  the  Goths,  of 
which  we  possess  only  an  excellent  abridgment  ("  I)e  Gothorum  Origine  et 
Rebus  Gestis")  by  Jornandes,  Bishop  of  Ravenna,  who  also  composed  a  short 
Universal  History.  8t.  Isidore,  Bishop  of  Seville,  who  died  in  G;J6,  also  wrote 
a  Chronicle  from  the  time  of  Adam,  and  a  History  of  the  Goths,  the  Vandals, 
the  Suevi,  and  the  Visigoths,  amidst  whom  he  had  passed  his  life. 

The  most  ancient  and  valuable  record  of  French  history  is  the  great  work 
of  Gregory  of  Tours,  who  in  his  "  Ilistoire  Ecclesiastique  des  Francs  "  gave 
a  faithful  description  of  the  events  in  which  he  took  part.  Born  in 
Auvergne,  of  a  patrician  family  which  had  produced  several  senators  and 

3  N 


45  8 


CHRONICLES.   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


prelates,  he  was  brought  up  by  his  uncle,  St.  Gall,  Bishop  of  Clermont,  and 
was  himself  made  Bishop  of  Tours  in  573.  The  esteem  in  which  he  was  held 
at  the  court  of  Chilperic  and  Fredegonde  enabled  him  to  play  a  conspicuous 
part  in  the  political  affairs  of  the  Merovingian  monarchy  ;  he  had  been  mixed  up 
in  the  most  secret  transactions  of  Chilperic's  reign,  and  was  conversant  with  all 
the  details  of  the  deadly  struggle  between  the  rival  Queens,  Fredegonde  and 
Brunehaut.     This,  no  doubt,  was  the  reason  which  induced  him  to  write  his 


Fig.  356  — Equestrian  Statue  of  Clovia,  King  of  the  Franks  (46o — 511),  by  Erwin  de  Steinbuch 
(Thirteenth  Century),  placed  over  the  Western  Portico  of  Strasburg  Cathedi-al. 


History.  His  book,  commencing  with  the  origin  of  France,  embraces  a  period 
of  174  years,  from  the  establishment  of  the  Franks  in  Gaul  about  the  year 
429.  The  first  part  of  this  History  is  written  after  Sidonius  Apollinaris,  St. 
Remy,  Bishop  of  Eheims,  the  "  Acts  of  the  Saints,"  and,  above  all,  after  oral 
tradition  (Fig.  356).  With  regard  to  the  events  of  the  last  fifty  years 
recorded  in  his  History,  Gregory  of  Tours  writes  what  he  had  himself  seen,  or 


CHROXICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


459 


what  he  had  ascertained  from  trustworthy  sources.  He  was  not,  perhaps,  a 
man  of  very  deep  learning,  but  he  was  endowed  with  judgment  and  intelli- 
gence. He  possessed,  moreover,  the  qualities  which  are  so  often  wanting 
in  historians — good  faith,  candour,  and  the  desire  to  be  impartial.  His 
style,  though  by  no  means  correct  and  almost  imcouth,  is  not  devoid  of 
colour,  though  simiDle  and  artless,  and  some  of  his  descriptions  are  traced 
with  great  power.  Gregory  of  Tours,  who  had  read  Virgil,  Sallust,  and 
Plinj^,  doubtless  sought  to  imitate  them  in  an  age  when  the  study  of  literature 
was  almost  extinct.  Nor  is  he  to  be  blamed  for  introducing  into  his  work 
the  legends  and  miracles  of  which  all  his  contemporaries  were  full. 


Fig.  357. — The  Seven  Saints  of  Brittany. — Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving  from  the  "Chroniqucs 
de  Bretagne,"  by  Alain  Bouchard  (Paris,  Galliot  du  Pre,  1514,  in  4to). — In  the  Library  of 
M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paria. 


This  work,  priceless  and  unique  of  its  kind,  was  more  often  to  be  found  in 
the  libraries  of  the  monasteries  than  in  the  archives  of  the  Merovingian  kings, 
and  it  must  have  had  a  great  notoriety  upon  the  death  of  its  author  in  593, 
for  the  best  historian  of  the  seventh  century,  Fredegaire,  surnamed  the 
Scholastic,  continuing  his  history  borrowed  from  Eusebius,  Julius  Africanus, 
and  other  Greek  and  Latin  chroniclers,  composed  for  the  third  book  of  this 
Chronicle  an  analytical  abridgment  of  Gregory  of  Tours'  book.  Fredegaire, 
who  was  apparently  a  Burgundian,  brought  his  story  up  to  his  death  in  GGO. 


46o  CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 

The  fifth  book  of  this  work  contains  some  very  valuable  information  concern- 
ing the  reigns  of  Clotaire  II.,  Dagobert  I.,  and  Clovis  the  younger.  The 
author  states  in  his  preface  that  he  relates  what  he  has  either  seen,  or  heard 
from  persons  in  whom  he  can  place  reliance,  or  taken  from  standard  works. 
It  is  the  only  historical  record  of  what  took  place  in  France  during  that 
obscure  period. 

It  is  difficult  to  give  an  explanation  for  the  scarcity  of  contemporary 
Chronicles  in  the  seventh  and  eighth  centuries,  when  we  remember  that  the 
bishops  were  the  true  guardians  of  history,  and  that  monks  in  all  the  large 
monasteries  made  a  point  of  collecting  in  chronological  order  the  principal 
events  of  civil  and  religious  history.  It  is  true  that  these  Chronicles  were 
diifuse  and  loosely  put  together,  and  in  these  monastic  Chronicles  more  space 
is  devoted  to  the  internal  aiiairs  of  the  community  than  to  public  occurrences, 
of  which  only  vague  rumours  often  reached  them.  Some  of  these  Chronicles 
are  nevertheless  valuable  (Fig.  357),  on  account  of  the  scarcity  of  historical 
documents  relating  to  early  ages ;  and  amongst  the  mass  of  them  which  have 
been  published  we  may  cite  as  the  most  interesting  those  of  Moissac, 
Fontenelle,  St.  Medard  de  Soissons,  Fleury-sur-Loire,  St.  Gall,  and  St. 
Bertin.  Nor  do  we  know  anything  as  to  the  names  of  the  authors  who  wrote 
the  daily  chronicles,  the  diary  as  we  should  say,  of  the  ordinary  incidents 
which  occurred  in  the  households  of  the  King  and  of  the  nobility,  except  that 
two  of  those  who  succeeded  Fredegaire  in  his  work  say  that  their  labours 
were  undertaken,  the  one  by  order  of  Childebrand,  uncle  of  Pepin  d'Heristal, 
mayor  of  the  palace,  the  other  by  order  of  Nibelung,  son  of  Childebrand,  who 
were  anxious  to  jDOssess  annals  of  the  First  Hace.  There  is  reason  for  believing 
that  many  of  the  Chronicles  were  lost  in  the  wars  and  devastations  of  these 
barbarous  epochs,  in  the  course  of  which  most  of  the  towns  and  monasteries 
were  burnt  and  put  to  sack.  This  is  to  be  regretted,  for,  as  Lacurne  de  St. 
Palaye  observes,  "  No  age  was  so  barbarous  but  what  the  French  felt  how 
useful  might  be  the  knowledge  of  their  history,  in  order  to  stimulate  men, 
by  the  example  of  their  forefathers,  to  lead  virtuous  and  honourable  lives."  It 
must  not  be  supposed,  however,  that  the  ancient  Asiatic  and  Northern  peoples 
who  had  successively  invaded  Europe  during  the  fifth  and  sixth  centuries  had 
no  history.  Their  history,  although  not  committed  to  writing,  consisted  of 
warlike  and  religious  songs,  which  were  transmitted  from  generation  to 
generation,  and  which  dated  from  a  very  remote  period.     These  were  the 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


461 


national  songs  which  Charlemagne  had  collected  from,  the  mouths  of  their 
descendants,  who  had  become  merged  in  the  native  populations  of  his  empire. 
It  was  from  the  national  songs,  also,  of  the  ancient  Britons,  of  the  Saxons, 
and  of  the  Anglians  that  the  Venerable  Bede  drew  the  materials  for  his 
Ecclesiastical  History  of  England,  composed  by  him  in  the  Monastery  of 
Jarrow,  near  Durham,  where  he  died  in  735. 

Charlemagne  is  credited  with  the  honour  of  having  instituted  the  monastic 
chronicles  which  were  ordered  to  be  preserved  in  all  monastic  foimdations 
formed  bv  the  crown.      In  each  of  these  it  was  the  monk  who  was  most 


Fig.  358. — Coronation  of  Chiirlemagne. — Miniature  from  the  "  Chroniciues  de  St.  Denis." 
Manuscript  of  the  Fourteenth  Century. — In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


distinguished  for  his  learning  and  uprightness  who  was  intrusted  with  the 
duty  of  enregistering  in  chronological  order  the  events  of  each  reign  ;  and,  at 
the  death  of  the  King,  his  notes  served  for  the  compilation  of  a  Chronicle 
which  was  deposited  in  the  archives  of  the  monastery.  The  famous  Abbey  of 
St.  Denis  doubtless  possessed,  in  preference  to  all  other  monasteries,  the 
privilege  of  thus  composing  the  posthumous  history  of  the  Kings  (Fig.  358), 
with  a  degree  of  religious  authority  reminding  one  of  the  judgment  of  the 
dead  in  ancient  Egypt,  and  of  keeping  the  depot  of  these  national  archives, 
which  were  so  famous  throughout  the  Middle  Ages.     One  of  the  oldest  of 


462  CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 

Englisli  historians  relates  tliat  tlie  kings  had  in  constant  attendance  at  their 
court  certain  men  of  letters  who  were  intrusted  with  the  task  of  recording 
their  memorable  sayings  and  doings,  in  order  to  transmit  them,  after  their 
death,  to  posterity.  Eginhard,  the  secretary  {notarius)  of  Charlemagne,  held 
this  confidential  post,  and  he  was  also  selected  by  that  monarch  to  supervise 
the  education  of  the  heirs  to  his  throne.  It  was,  no  doubt,  in  order  to  acquit 
himself  of  this  task  that  the  learned  favourite  of  the  Emperor  retired  into  the 
Monastery  of  Selingstadt,  where  he  arranged  the  materials  for  his  Life  of 
Charlemagne.  This  work,  the  best  of  all  those  which  he  has  left,  was 
apparently  composed  in  imitation  of  Suetonius's  Lives  of  the  Twelve  Caesars. 
In  reading  it  one  can  easily  see  that  the  author  was  a  member  of  the  Pauline 
Academy,  and  that,  in  spite  of  his  rugged  and  faulty  style,  he  endeavoured  to 
imitate  the  historical  writers  of  ancient  Rome. 

It  is  strange  that  the  historical  monuments  of  Charlemagne's  epoch  should 
be  so  few,  for  that  sovereign  was  fond  of  literature,  and  encouraged  those  who 
cultivated  it,  and  he  must  have  followed  with  interest  the  progress  of 
historical  studj^  He  may  not,  however,  have  cared  to  be  the  subject  of 
works  which  he  could  not  himself  revise,  and,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  most  of  the 
Chronicles  treating  of  his  reign  are  posterior  to  his  death  (814).  There  is  no 
evidence  that  any  of  the  distinguished  scholars  whom  he  had  collected  about 
him  were  ordered  to  write  his  own  history.  During  his  meals  he  had 
read  to  him  the  historical  songs  of  the  nations  of  the  North  and  of  Germany 
(caiitilence  historicce) ,  which  he  had  got  together  as  materials  for  a  history  of 
the  past,  and  he  probably  listened  with  not  less  interest  to  the  songs  of  the 
bards  who  celebrated  his  warlike  achievements  in  poems  which  were  written 
in  the  vulgar  tongue,  but  which  were  afterwards  translated  into  Latin,  and 
finally  paraphrased  into  chansons  de  ge.ste  in  the  language  of  the  twelfth 
century.  But,  excepting  Eginhard,  there  were  no  scribes  or  secretaries  in  the 
palace  intrusted  with  the  duty  of  writing,  under  the  Emperor's  supervision, 
the  official  record  of  his  public  and  private  life. 

Charlemagne  had  been  long  in  his  grave  when  the  monk  of  St.  Gall, 
generally  believed  to  be  a  man  named  Necker,  published  in  two  books,  after 
the  evidence  of  two  contemporaries,  Priest  "VYerinbert  and  Chevalier  Adalbert, 
a  Chronicle  ("  De  Gestis  Caroli  Magni ")  which  he  dedicated  to  Charles  the 
Fat,  Emperor  of  Germany.  This  Chronicle,  composed  a  hundred  and  seventy 
years  after  the  Emperor's  death,  and  the  author  of  which  glorified  his  memory. 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


4^3 


is  very  valuable,  in  spite  of  the  exaggerations  with  which  it  teems.     It  is 
written  in  an  artless  and  attractive  style,  and  serves  at  least  to  counterbalance 


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the  false  Chronicle  of  Arclibishop  Turpin,  -which,  though  looked  upon  as 
reliable  in  the  Middle  Ages,  is  a  tissue  of  falsehood.  This  latter  Chronicle, 
attributed  to  the  Archbishop  of  Rheinis,  who  liolds  such  a  prouiiucnt  place  in 


464  CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,  MEMOIRS. 

romances  of  chivalry,  relates  the  fabled  expedition  of  Charlemagne  and  his 
paladins  into  Spain.  It  is  in  two  distinct  parts :  the  first  five  chapters  were 
written  in  the  middle  of  the  eleventh,  and  the  others  in  the  beginning  of  the 
twelfth  century.  Here  is  the  place  to  speak  of  the  beautiful  "  Chanson  de 
Roland,"  but  there  is  no  need  to  mention  the  narrative  of  the  pseudo- 
Philomene  concerning  the  doings  of  Charlemagne  at  Narbonne  and  at 
Carcassonne,  and  his  fabled  expedition  to  the  Holy  Land  to  restore  the 
Patriarch  of  Jerusalem,  whom  the  Arabs  had  driven  out  (Fig.  359). 

Eginhard  and  Paul  Diacre  are  the  only  trustworthy  historians  of  the  reign 
of  Charlemagne.  Paul  Warnefride,  surnamed  Diacre,  because  he  had  taken 
deacon's  orders,  was  secretary  to  the  Lombard  king,  Didier,  and  afterwards 
lived  at  the  court  of  Charlemagne  before  he  went  into  the  Monastery  of 
Monte  Cassini,  where  he  completed  his  History  of  the  Lombards  ('•'  De  Gestis 
Langobardorum")  and  his  Abridgment  of  Roman  History.  It  would  be  a 
mistake  to  suppose  that  barbarism,  which  appeared  to  have  been  arrested  in 
its  onward  progress  during  the  reign  of  Charlemagne,  resumed  its  sway  in 
the  troubled  reigns  which  followed.  There  was  a  rapid  addition  to  the 
number  of  historians,  who  made  their  voices  heard  even  in  this  (tenth)  century 
of  disorder  and  social  transition.  Every  reign,  every  epoch,  and  every  abbey 
had  its  chroniclers.  In  the  ninth  century,  Ermold  le  Noir,  Abbot  of  Aniane, 
wrote  the  Life  of  Louis  the  D^bonnaire  ;  and  Nithard,  a  soldier  and  grandson 
of  Charlemagne,  who  was  born  in  790  and  died  in  858,  wrote  a  history  of  the 
quarrels  and  strife  which  took  place  amongst  the  sons  of  that  sovereign. 

The  tenth  century  produced  many  good  historians  in  nearly  every  country 
of  Europe.  In  Italy,  Luitprand,  Bishop  of  Cremona,  and  twice  ambassador 
at  Constantinople,  wrote  the  History  of  contemporary  Germany  (862  to  984)  ; 
Witikind,  monk  of  an  abbey  near  Paderborn,  wrote  the  Annals  of  the 
Imperial  House  under  the  Othos ;  and  Dudon,  Canon  of  St.  Quiatin,  under- 
took the  History  of  the  early  Dukes  of  Normandy.  There  was  an  abundance  of 
historians,  in  fact ;  and  while  Abbon,  Abbot  of  the  old  Benedictine  monaster}^ 
of  Fleury-sur-Loire  (died  in  933)  described  in  epic  verse  the  siege  of  Paris  by 
the  Normans  ("De  Bello  Parisiacas  Urbis") — a  siege  of  which  he  was  an  eye- 
witness— Flodoard,  Canon  of  Pheims,  who  died  in  966,  wrote  some  local 
Chronicles,  in  which  are  recorded  many  events  of  general  interest.    . 

Most  of  the  numerous  historians  of  the  eleventh  century  were  prelates 
and  monks,  among  whom  may  be  mentioned  Dithmar,  Bishop  of  Merseburg 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


46s 


in  1009,  author  of  a  Chronicle  of  Germany  from  876  to  1018 ;  Raoul  Glaber, 
monk  of  Cluny,  whose  Chronicle,  extending  from  900  to  1046,  is  one  of  the  most 
interesting  produced  during  the  Middle  Ages ;  and  Ainioin,  of  Yillef  ranche 
in  Perigord  (died  in  1008),  who  had  a  well-deserved  reputation  in  the  history 
school  of  the  Benedictines  at  Fleury-sur-Loire,  and  who  spent  part  of  his  life 
in  comjjosing,  after  documents  preserved  in  that  celebrated  abbey,  a  History 
of  the  Merovingian  kings,  which  he  himself  brought  down  to  the  reign  of 
Clovis,  and  which  his  successors,  also  Benedictine  monks,  continued  to  the 


Fig.  360.— Coronation  of  the  Great  Khan,  First  King  of  Tartary.— Miniature  from  the  "  Fleur 
des  Histoires  de  la  Terre  d'Orient,"  compiled  hy  Brother  Hayeon  or  Hayton  (Hethonm),  Lord 
of  Cort,  Cousin-Gei-man  of  the  King  of  Armenia. — Manuseript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — In 
the  Library  of  ]M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


year  654.  This  is  a  well-arranged  history,  and  one  in  which  the  Chronicles 
have  been  fused  with  a  view  to  logical  sequence.  Thegan,  Archbishop  oi 
Treves,  composed,  nnich  upon  the  same  plan,  a  Life  of  Louis  the  Debonnaire ; 
and  Helgaud,  a  monk  at  Fleury-.sur-Loirc,  an  abridged  Life  of  King  Robert. 
It  was  not  till  the  close  of  the  twelfth  century  that  the  vulgar  tongue 
passed  from  pojjulur  poetry  into  history,  and  while  it  was  in  its  Hist  hesitating 

;?  u 


466 


CHRONICLES,  HISTORIES,  MEMOIRS. 


utterances,  the  historians,  all  of  whom  were  clerks  and  monks,  did  not 
abandon  the  use  of  Latin,  in  which  they  recorded,  without  stopping  to  weigh 
their  probability,  the  wildest  stories  and  legends  (Fig.  360).  But  the 
Crusades,  the  first  of  which  dates  from  1096,  gave  a  fresh  impulse  to  historical 
writing,  and  for  a  century  and  a  half  there  was  a  long  siiccession  of  historians 
of  the  Crusades,  who  described  them  in  various  languages,  but  principally 


Fig.  361.— Alfonso  X.,  lie  Wise,  King  of  Castile  (1252—1284),  the  supposed  Author  of  the  famous 
"  Cronica  de  Espana."  —  Votive  Statue  in  the  Toledo  Cathedral.  —  After  the  "Iconografia 
Espanola,"  by  Carderera. 


in  Latin  (Fig.  361).  These  historians  relate,  for  the  most  part,  facts  of  which 
they  were  themselves  witnesses,  and  some  of  them  import  into  their  works  the 
pious  enthusiasm  which  animated  those  who  took  part  in  the  Crusades.  Each 
of  these  writers  has  his  sjiecial  characteristics,  from  Guibert  de  Nogent,  who 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


467 


wrote  the  History  of  the  first  Crusade,  down  to  William  of  Tyr.  Amongst 
those  who  wrote  in  Latin  wc  may  mention  Bernard  the  Treasurer,  xVlbert  of 
Aix,  Jacques  de  Vitry,  Robert  the  Monk,  Fouchcr  of  Chartrcs,  and  Odou  de 
DeuLl.  There  are  also  two  French  historians  of  the  fourth  and  last  Crusade, 
both  of  whose  names  have  become  household  words — Villehardouin  and  the 
Sire  de  Joinville. 

But,  before  speaking  of  the  French  historians  who  brought  about  a 
complete  change  in  the  form  of  historical  works,  we  must  refer  to  the  Greek 
and  Latin  writers,  and  also  to  a  few  historians  in  the  vulgar  tongue,  who 


Fig.  362.—"  How  the  Due  d'Alan(;on  took  the  said  Town  of  AJaiKjon." — Miniature  from  the 
"  Vigiles  de  Charles  VII.,"  by  Martial  d'Auvergne. — Manuscript  dated  1484  (No.  5054). — In 
the  National  Library,  Paris. 


contributed  not  a  little  to  the  revival  of  historical  science.  Cedienus  and 
Zonoras,  like  most  of  the  historians  of  the  Middle  Ages,  commenced  with  the 
creation  of  the  world,  and  brought  their  Chronicles  down  to  their  own  day, 
the  one  to  lOuZ,  the  other  to  1118.  Another  Greek  historian,  Nicctas 
Choniates,  commenced  his  Annals,  of  which  there  were  twenty-one  books,  with 
the  death  of  Alexis  Comnenus,  and  terminated  them  with  the  death  of  the 
Emperor  Baldwin.  The  Latin  historians  were  so  numerous  that  a  mere  list 
of  their  names  would  fill  more  than  ten  pages,  and  the  only  writers  we  need 


468  CHRONICLES,  HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 

allude  to  are  William  of  Mahnesbury,  Henry  of  Huntingdon,  and  Roger  of 
Hoveden,  in  England  ;  Otho  of  Frisingen,  Otfrid  of  Viterbo,  and  Conrad  of 
Lichtenau,  in  Germany ;  Leon,  Cardinal  of  Ostia,  in  Italy ;  and  Roderick 
Ximenes,  in  Spain  (Fig.  361).  Of  the  Chronicles  in  the  vulgar  tongue  the 
most  remarkable  is  that  of  Nestor,  written  in  the  Slav  tongue  in  a  monastery 
at  KiefE  about  1116.  To  the  historians  who  succeeded  these  in  the  various 
countries  of  Europe  we  have  not  space  to  allude,  and  it  is  the  less  necessary  to 
do  so  as  their  names  are  scarcely  remembered. 

We  must  not,  however,  pass  over  the  universal  Chronicle  of  Matthew 
Paris,  who  was  a  monk  and  historian  in  the  Benedictine  Abbey  of  St.  Albans, 
in  the  diocese  of  Lincoln,  and  who  gave  the  title  of  "Historia  Major 
Anglorum "  to  his  history  of  the  English,  composed  from  the  various 
Chronicles  of  the  eleventh  and  twelfth  centuries.  Matthew  Paris  is  certainly 
one  of  the  most  remarkable  historians  of  the  Middle  Ages,  and  his  great  work 
concerns  not  less  France  than  England,  especially  with  regard  to  the  latter 
part,  in  which  he  described,  after  what  he  himself  had  witnessed,  the  events 
occurring  between  1235  and  his  death  in  1259.  At  this  time  the  best 
historians  were  to  be  found  in  France,  and  their  numbers  continued  to 
increase  when  they  had  created  a  school  of  history,  which  became  of  the 
more  importance  as  Latin  was  gradually  reiDlaced  by  French  in  general 
conversation.  As  early  as  the  middle  of  the  twelfth  century,  fifty  years 
before  Villehardouin,  in  his  Chronicle  of  the  conquest  of  Constantinople, 
had  proved  that  the  vulgar  idiom  was  well  suited  to  works  of  history,  Suger, 
Minister  of  State  under  Louis  VI.  and  Louis  VII.,  had,  it  is  said,  perceived 
that  this  idiom,  which  had  long  been  in  general  use  at  court  and  among 
the  upper  classes,  might  be  emploj^ed  to  advantage  in  the  Royal  Chronicles, 
which  had  been  compiled  for  the  last  three  centuries  at  the  Abbey  of 
St.  Denis,  where  he  died  in  1152,  and  of  which  he  was  abbot.  This  fact 
is  not  absolutely  certain,  but  Suger,  who  had  written  in  Latin,  though  of  a 
somewhat  obscure  style,  the  Life  of  Louis  the  Fat  and  part  of  the  Life  of 
Louis  the  Young,  deserves  to  be  given  a  prominent  place  in  the  list  of 
French  historians. 

The  Latin  Chronicles  of  the  royal  Abbey  of  St.  Denis  had  long  been 
famous,  and  there  were  deposited  the  most  valuable  manuscripts  of  French 
history. 

The  writers  of  the  romances  and  chansons  de  geste,  with  a  view  of  obtaining 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS.  469 

greater  credence  for  their  works  of  imagination,  did  not  scruple  to  declare 
that  they  had  derived  their  atolroi  (stories)  from  the  archives  of  St.  Denis. 
(See  chapter  on  Romances.)  The  author  of  the  prose  romance,  "Beufve 
d'Antonne,"  says,  "Materials  for  a  narrative  of  the  deeds  of  King  Charles 
Martel  are  to  he  found  in  the  Chronicles  of  Beufve  d'Antonne  and  elsewhere, 
as  also  at  St.  Denis,  where  there  is  nothing  but  chronicle."  The  author  of 
the  romance  in  verse,  "  Doolin  de  Maycnce,"  says  : — 


"Les  saiges  clers  d'adonc,  par  leur  senifiance, 
En  firent  les  Croniques  qui  sout  de  grant  vaillance, 
Et  sont  en  Tabbaie  do  Saint-Denya  en  France  ; 
Puis,  ont  este  estraites,  par  moult  bele  ordonnance, 
De  latin  en  roman."  .  .  . 


The  first  historical  romances  were  originallj'  given  as  Imtorij  in  rJu/nie,  and 
the  jugglers,  who  visited  the  chateaux  and  the  plenary  courts  to  recite  and 
chant  the  adventures  of  the  Knights  of  the  Round  Table  and  other  lays 
already  alluded  to,  taught  their  credulous  and  uneducated  hearers  as  much  as 
any  of  these  nobles  cared  to  learn  concerning  ancient  history.  The  romances 
of  "Eou"  and  "Brut,"  of  "Godfrey  do  Bouillon,"  and  a  host  of  others  of  a 
kindred  sort,  comj)osed  in  verse,  were  accepted  as  documents  of  unimpeach- 
able veracity.  The  result  was  that  the  true  historians,  in  order  to  prevent 
the  jugglers  from  having  a  monopoly  of  public  favour,  invented  mcfrifnl 
histories,  which  did,  in  fact,  effect  that  purpose.  In  this  way  Guillaume 
Guiart  set  to  rhyme  a  Chronicle  (from  1165  to  1306)  which  he  entitled  the 
"Branche  des  Boyaidx  Lignagcs  ;  "  Godfrey  de  Paris  composed  a  Chronicle, 
of  his  time,  under  the  reign  of  Philippe  le  Bel ;  and  Philippe  !Mouskes  a 
Universal  History  consisting  of  thirty-two  thousand  lines,  and  relating  the 
history  of  Flanders  from  the  earliest  ages  to  the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century. 
These  metrical  Chronicles  had  a  .special  class  of  readers  among  the  lovers  of 
poetry,  and  two  centuries  later  the  lawyer-poet  Martial  d'Auvergne  still 
further  perfected  the  metrical  Chronicle  by  compo.sing  the  "  Vigiles  du  Roi 
Charles  VII."  (Figs.  362  and  363),  one  of  the  best  histories  of  that  prince; 
while  his  contemporary,  GuiUaume  Cretin,  precentor  and  canon  at  the  Samte- 
ChapeUe  of  Vincennes,  set  to  work  at  rhj-ming  the  Chronicles  of  France  from 
Charlemagne  to  Francois  I. 

Geoffrey,  Sire  de  Yilleharduuin,  Marshal  of  Champagne,  who  had  taken 


470 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


an  active  part  in  the  fourth  Crusade,  furnished  a  model  for  prose  history  in 
his  Chronicle,  or  rather  Memoir,  upon  the  conquest  of  Constantinople  by  the 
crusaders  in  1202.  It  is  surprising  to  find  in  so  ancient  a  work  such  a 
faithful  and  spirited  account  of  the  great  events  which  this  nobleman,  who 
was  a  warrior  and  a  statesman  as  well,  had  seen  happen.  His  work  is,  so  to 
speak,  the  starting-point  for  those  private  memoirs  which  have  always  been 
highly  appreciated  in  France,  and  of  which  there  has  been  a  large  supply 
ever  siuce.  The  Chronicle  of  the  Sire  de  Joinville,  written  more  than  seventy 
years  after  that  of  Villehardouin,  also  belongs  to  the  category  of  private 
memoirs,  though  the  worthy  knight,  who  composed  it  in  his  old  age,  had 


-~U1jT 


v/l^Wf'^'^'l^V-FT^" 


Fig.  363. — "  How  the  Comte  de  Foix  took  strong  Places  in  Guienne." — Miniature  from  the  "  Vigiles 
de  Charles  VII.,  by  Martial  d'Auvergne. — Manuscript  dated  1484  (No.  5,054).— In  the 
National  Librai-y,  Paris. 


intended  to  write  the  Life  of  St.  Louis  rather  than  a  history  of  his  own.  He 
had  not  assuredly  the  keen  penetration  of  Villehardouin,  but  unconsciously 
he  has  written  one  of  the  most  exquisite  works  in  the  ancient  literature  of 
France.  He  was  not  a  writer,  yet  he  surpasses  all  the  writers  of  his  day  by 
the  charm,  the  grace,  the  sensibility,  and  the  piquant  artlessness  of  his 
narrative  (Fig.  364). 

These  excellent  Memoirs,  written  by  eye-witnesses  of  unquestionable 
authority,  had  not,  however,  at  the  time  they  appeared,  the  amount  of 
success  which  their  authors  may  weU  have  expected.  They  remained  in 
the  archives  of  the  Sire  de  Villehardouin  in  Romania,  and  in  those  of  the 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   I\rEMOIRS. 


47' 


Chateau  de  Joinville,  only  a  few  coiDies  being  circulated  at  the  French  court, 
and  amongst  the  noblemen  who  possessed  a  librarj-.  Yet  the  Sire  de  Join- 
ville had  written  these  Memoirs  at  the  request  of  Queen  Jeanne,  wife  of 
Philippe  le  Bel,  and  when  they  were  printed  in  the  sixteenth  century  the 
original  manuscript  was  no  longer  to  be  found.  Other  statesmen  and  soldiers 
also  compiled  their  Memoirs,  which,  remaining  buried  in  the  archives  of  their 
castles,  were  destroyed,  like  so  many  other  manuscripts,  during  the  wars  of  the 
fourteenth  and  fifteenth  centuries.  The  Latin  Chronicles  in  the  monasteries 
and  the  churches  suffered  less  from  the  pillage  and  biirning  which  became 
the  fate  of  so  manj'  castles  and  fortified  towns.  Thus  there  remain  a 
number  of  these  Latin  Chronicles,  most  of  which  have  never  been  published, 


Fig.  364. — The  Envoys  from  the  Stiudan,  having  at  their  head  a  little  old  Man  walking  on  Crutches, 
come  to  propose  Terms  of  Ransom  to  the  captive  Crusaders.— After  a  Sliniature  from  the 
"  Credo,"  by  Joinville.— JIanuscript  of  the  Thirteenth  Century,  formerly  belonging  to  the 
National  Library,  Paris,  but  at  present  in  England. 

but  the  existence  of  which  proves  how  the  taste  for  history  had  spread  since 
the  twelfth  century.  The  clerks,  monks,  priests,  savants,  and  doctors  would 
have  considered  themselves  disgraced  if  they  had  written  in  any  other 
language  than  Latin ;  the  nobles,  the  warriors,  the  politicians,  the  poets,  and 
the  middle  classes  only  used  the  vulgar  tongue  to  narrate  events  in  which 
they  had  taken  part,  or  which  they  had  witnessed.  It  may,  Ihcrefore,  be 
considered  as  certain  that  from  this  period  there  was  a  very  marked  distmc- 
tion  between  general  histories  and  personal  memoirs,  the  latter  being  nearly 
always  in  French,  and  the  former  in  Tjatiu. 


472  CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 

At  tlie  same  time  an  abridged  French  edition  was  being  prepared,  in  tte 
Abbey  of  St.  Denis,  of  the  Chronicles  of  France,  and  this  edition  was  modified 
to  keejD  pace  with  the  changes  in  the  language.  This  is  how  it  came  to 
pass  that  there  were  several  different  versions  of  these  Chronicles.  It  would 
appear,  according  to  some  verses  attribvited  to  Mathieu  de  Vendome,  Abbot 
of  St.  Denis  in  the  thirteenth  century,  and  placed  at  the  head  of  the  oldest 
manuscripts  of  these  Chronicles,  that  they  were  translated  into  French  by  his 
order,  about  1274,  under  the  title  of  "  Roman  des  Rois."  These  verses  are 
explanatory  of  the  profit  to  be  derived  from  reading  the  Chronicles : — 


..."  L'on  ne  doit  ce  livre  mespriser  ne  despire  (decrier), 

Qui  est  fait  des  bons  princes  dou  regne  et  de  1' empire. 

Qui  sovent  i  voudroit  estudier  et  lire, 

Bien  puet  s<;avoir  qu'il  doit  eschiver  et  eslire  (esqui ver  et  choiair) . 

Et  dou  bien  et  dou  mal  puet  cbasoun  son  prou  (profit)  faire  ; 

Par  I'exemple  des  bons  se  doit-on  au  bien  traire  (tirer)  ; 

Par  les  faits  des  mauvaia  qui  sont  tout  le  contraire, 

Se  doit  chascun  dou  mal  esloingner  et  retraire  (retirer) ; 

Mains  bons  enseignenients  puet-on  prendre  en  ce  livre."  .  .  . 


M.  Paulin  Paris,  who  has  published  a  very  excellent  edition  of  this  work, 
says  of  it  with  truth,  "  The  Chronicles  of  St.  Denis  are  probably  the  most 
glorious  monument  of  history  ever  raised  in  any  language  or  by  any  people, 
with  the  exception  of  the  Bible."  These  Chronicles,  which  were  not  in  reality 
published  imtil  the  fifteenth  century,  but  which  as  early  as  the  fourteenth  had 
been  shown  to  kings  and  great  personages,  appear  to  have  been  regarded  with 
almost  religious  veneration  as  the  Golden  Book  of  the  Church  and  of  the 
French  monarchy.  When  foreign  sovereigns  came  to  the  French  court  the)' 
asked  to  be  allowed  to  see  and  to  handle  this  venerable  book.  Upon  a 
manuscript  of  these  Chronicles  belonging  to  the  Due  de  Berry,  brother  of 
Charles  V.,  may  be  read  the  following  marginal  note  : — "  The  which  book  the 
said  Seigneur  de  Berry  had  taken  from  the  Church  of  St.  Denis  to  show  to 
the  Emperor  Sigismond  (in  1415),  and  also  to  copy."  King  Charles  V.  had 
previoiisly  had  several  copies  taken,  illustrated  with  miniatures,  and  he  always 
had  a  copy  open  u^pon  his  desk,  by  the  side  of  the  Bible. 

The  monks  of  St.  Denis  continued  to  write  in  Latin  an  oflficial  account  of 
each  reign,  according  to  the  privileges  of  their  royal  abbeJ^  These  accounts 
took  the  form  of  very  detailed  annals,  all  the  materials  for  ^^•hich  had  been 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


473 


collected  with  scrui)ulous  care,  and  which  were  put  together  by  the  best 
writers  in  the  cammimity.  It  was  in  this  fashion  that  Guillainne  de  Nano-is 
wrote  the  Life  of  St.  Louis  and  of  Philij)  the  Bold,  as  Rigord  did  that  of 
Philip  Augustus.  The  Lives  of  the  hitter's  successors,  down  to  Charles  VI., 
were  also  written  upon  the  same  jjlan — that  is  to  say,  in  great  detail by 


Fig.  36.5. —  Betrothal  Interview  between  the  Arehduke  MaximiK:m  ,'ind  Mary  of  Burgundy  at 
Ghent,  April  18th,  1477. — Miniature  from  the  "  Chroniques  de  Flandre." — Manuscript  of  the 
Fifteenth  Century  (N'o.  13,073).— In  the  Burgundy  Library,  Brussels. 


monks  who  remained  anonj-mous,  and  whose  works  are  said  to  have  disap- 
peared when  the  Abbey  of  St.  Denis  was  three  times  pillaged  between  1410 
and  1429  by  the  Burgundians,  the  Armagnacs,  and  the  English.  There  is 
some  reason,  however,  for  thinking  that  the  monks  themselves  had  concealed 

3  p 


474  CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 

or  destroyed  tlieir  original  works,  in  which,  the  history  of  the  deadly  "wars 
between  France  and  England,  as  well  as  of  the  ci^-il  wars  and  political 
factions  of  the  fourteenth  century,  was  narrated  in  too  indignant  and  sorrow- 
ful terms.  All  that  remains  to  us  of  these  raluahle  Chronicles  of  the  Kings 
of  France  from  Louis  YIII.  to  Charles  V.  is  the  general  History  of  the 
reign  of  Charles  YI.,  which  gives  us  a  very  favourable  idea  of  what  the  rest 
must  have  been.  Jfor  do  we  even  know  who  were  the  authors  of  this  History, 
the  last  which  was  written  in  Latia. 

From  the  time  of  Charles  YII.  there  was  an  ofEcial  chronicler  of  France 
amongst  the  monks  of  St.  Denis,  and  the  first  who  held  this  post  was  Jean 
Chartier,  younger  brother  of  the  royal  poet,  Alain  Chartier.  We  owe  to  him 
an  excellent  Chronicle  of  the  reign  of  Charles  YII.,  written  in  French,  but  too 
much  abridged  ;  and  it  is  supposed  that  this  was  the  last  Chronicle  compiled 
imder  the  supervision  of  the  Chapter  of  St.  Denis ;  for  Jean  Castel,  appointed 
chronicler  of  France  after  Jean  Chartier,  was  a  monk  of  St.  ilartin  des 
Champs,  and  became  Abbot  of  St.  3Iaur  des  Fosses.  At  his  death  ia  1482, 
all  his  manuscripts  were  placed  in  a  casket  and  transferred  to  St.  Denis,  but 
Louis  XL  ordered  that  the  said  manuscripts,  which  doubtless  related  to  the 
history  of  'his  reign,  shoidd  be  returned  to  his  Seal  Ofiice.  Jean  d'Auton, 
Abbot  of  Angle,  succeeded  Jean  Castel  as  Chronicler-Royal  in  the  reign  of 
Louis  XII.,  while  Jean  Mace  held  that  office  under  Francois  I.  The  Yalois 
were  not  content  ■nith  having  one  chronicler,  and  henceforward  there  were 
three  Histriographers  of  France  in  place  of  the  chronicler  of  the  King, 
and  this  post,  the  salary  of  which  was  raised  from  1,200  to  2,400  livres 
(francs)  in  1610,  was  held  \)\  Pierre  Paschal,  Bernard  du  HaUlan,  and  Pierre 
Mathieu. 

The  "Chroniques  de  France"  or  "de  Saint  Denis,"  written  in  French, 
stopped  at  the  end  of  the  reign  of  Chai'les  YII. ;  and  this  great  historical 
work  long  retained  its  renown,  notwithstanding  the  fables  which  envelop  the 
cradle  of  the  monarchy,  and  trace  it  back  to  Francus,  son  of  Hector,  who  is 
said  to  have  settled  in  Gaul  after  the  fall  of  Troj-.  The  religious  legends,  the 
lives  of  the  saints,  and  the  miracles  which  we  find  interspersed  in  the  history 
of  the  first  two  races,  represent  the  spirit  of  the  age  in  "nhich  these  annals 
were  put  together,  and  are  not  documents  to  be  set  on  one  side,  though  they 
have  very  erroneouslj'  been  looked  upon  as  discrediting  the  simple  and  honest 
compilation  in  which  thej'  are  embodied.    But  it  must  nevertheless  be  allowed 


SIKGE  OF  A  TOWN  DKFENDED  BY  THE  BURGUNDIANS 
UNDER  CHARLES  VI. 

Miniature  t.ikon  from  tho  ClivonU/nes  of  Monstrelet;  Paris,  Verar.l,  (about  im  A  D. ) 
in-fo'io.  (E.lit.on  upon  vellum).  In  the  library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmm-Dwlot. 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS.  475 

that,  for  the  fourteenth  and  part  of  the  fifteenth  century,  the  "  Chroniques  de 
St.  Denis,"  notwithstanding  the  moderation  and  ]n-ecision  with  which  they  were 
com^jiled,  are  not  equal  to  the  Chronicles  of  Froissart,  or  even  of  ^lonstrelet. 

Jean  Froissart  (Fig.  368)  is  certainly  one  of  the  most  attractive  of 
historians ;  he  is  more  the  chronicler  of  the  chevaliers  than  the  historian 
of  the  fourteenth  centurj^.  Born  at  Valenciennes  about  1337,  the  sou  of 
a  j)ainter  of  annorial  bearings,  and  himself  no  doubt  an  heraldic  writer,  he 
as  a  youth  attached  himself  to  the  Church,  and  notwithstanding  his  position 
as  clerk,  soon  took  to  travelling  about  Europe.  He  was  also  a  poet  and  a 
inusician,  and  this  gained  him  admittance  to  the  houses  of  the  nobles,  and 
afterwards  to  all  the  courts  of  Europe.    He  began  by  rewriting  after  his  own 

fimtw)  iJiiua  (a'  m\t  k  rcitiptrc  cttjpcm  ft>ut  (mC  bH.(m§_ 
eti\tt(itit()ymc  <\w  iftcituwiufiVMVuacfcnvnn((  ofxnF 
UMC^i^O)  tiu|aiir  (r>i;-fir;  (vtiihxntm  ciVc  iJiiimn^ikjiP'tonctL 


m> 


Fig.  366.— Fragment  of  the  "  Genealogy  0  '  the  Kings  of  France  and  of  England."— Manuscript  of 
the  Fifteenth  Century.— In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 

fancy  the  didl  and  involved  Chronicle  of  Jean  Lebel,  Canon  of  Liege,  but, 
being  dissatisfied  with  his  first  version,  he  put  it  into  another  shape,  and 
throuo-hout  his  life  perfected  it  and  added  to  it  what  he  had  learned  in  the 
course  of  his  travels.  As  he  himself  says,  "  Wherever  I  went,  I  questioned 
the  aged  chevaliers  and  esquires  who  had  been  engaged  in  the  wars,  and  who 
could  tell  me  all  about  them,  and  also  the  ancient  heralds,  in  order  to  verify 
and  control  what  I  had  heard.  Thus  did  I  compose  the  high  and  noble 
history."  His  history  is  a  vivid,  animated,  and  picturesque  Chronicle,  and 
the  only  fault  to  be  found  with  it  is  that  it  contains  a  few  repetitions  and 
mistakes.  Froissart  is  very  happy  in  the  variety  of  tone  ^N'hich  he  has  given 
to  this  picture,  in  which  are  portrayed  festivals  of  the  court,  gatherings  of 


476  CHROXICLES,   HISTORIES,  MEMOIRS. 

the  chevaliers,  and  tournaments,  as  well  as  sieges,  feats  of  arms,  and  battles. 
His  narrative  is  interlarded  with  amusing  anecdotes  and  witty  dialoo-ue,  and 
his  immense  Chronicle,  of  which  there  are  several  diiierent  texts,  extends 
without  a  break  from  1326  to  1400.  He  was  a  very  laborious  and  honest 
writer,  remarkable  for  his  impartiality ;  and  Michel  de  Montaigne  speaks  of 
him  as  "  the  worthy  Froissart,  who  has  always  been  frank  and  artless,  who,  if 
he  makes  a  mistake,  never  hesitates  to  acknowledge  and  correct  it  as  soon  as 
it  is  pointed  out  to  him,  and  who  gives  the  various  rumours  which  were 
current,  and  the  different  accounts  he  has  heard.  It  is  the  raw  material  for 
history,  and  every  one  can  profit  by  it  according  to  his  understanding." 

Like  Froissart,  Enguerrand  de  Monstrelet  and  Georges  Chastelain,  who 
were  simultaneously  engaged  in  continuing  his  Chronicles  by  adding  thereto 
the  history  of  their  time,  both  belonged  to  Flanders  and  to  the  court  of  the 
Duke  of  Burgundj-,  where  historians  were  encouraged  as  well  as  poets  and 
artists.  Monstrelet  (Fig.  369),  born  in  1390,  may,  perhaps,  have  known 
Froissart,  who  died  subsequently  to  1410,  and  he  may  even  have  received  his 
advice  when  he  began  to  write  Chronicles.  He  was  not  a  poet,  but  a  juris- 
consult and  archivist,  and  he  held  the  posts  of  Provost  of  Cambray  and 
Bailiff  of  Walincourt.  He  di-ew  up  a  Chi-onicle  which  began  where  that  of 
Froissart  left  off,  and  he  interpolated  into  it  a  great  number  of  original  pieces 
to  make  up  for  what  might  be  wanting  in  the  way  of  talent  in  his  own 
work.  Georges  Chastelain,  while  alive,  had  a  much  greater  reputation  than 
3Ionstrelet ;  but  his  Chi'onicle,  which  has  only  recently  been  printed,  and  an 
important  part  of  which  has  not  as  yet  been  found,  was  almost  unknown,  as 
he  had  written  it  exclusively  for  Philippe  le  Bon,  whose  secretary  and  official 
chronicler  he  became  after  having  undertaken  several  diplomatic  missions  in 
France  and  England.  This  long  Chronicle  extended  from  1419  to  1474,  and 
is  mainly  remarkable  for  the  clear  and  impartial  judgment,  the  discernment, 
and  the  elevated  style  of  the  writer. 

The  number  of  historical  works  written  in  French  multiplied  so  rapidly 
in  the  course  of  the  foiu-teenth  century  that  the  Poyal  Library  of  the  Louvre, 
the  inventoiy  of  which  was  taken  by  the  keepers  of  the  library  at  the  death 
of  Charles  Y.,  contained  more  than  two  hundred  manuscript  volumes  in  folio 
and  in  quarto,  historical  works,  most  of  them  magnificently  bound  in  wooden 
boards  covered  with  silk  and  with  silver  clasps.  Amongst  these  works  were 
several  French  translations  of  Livy,  Julius  Cfcsar,  Valerius  Maximus,  Lucan, 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


Ml 


f^ 


1 1 


i-r/' 


''i^w^ 


.J 


© 


Fig.  307.— ?:ntry  of  Ch;irl(S  VJ  I.  into  IIoucTi  in  H.'iO  — Jliniulure  finni  JI:niustii],t  of  tlie 
Fifteenlh  Century,  containing  the  Account  of  the  Hunched  Years'  Wur,  which  terniinaled  in 
1460  by  the  entry  of  Char'.cu  VII.  into  Rouen.  Binding  with  the  Arms  of  Anne  of  Brittany, 
Wife  of  Louia  XII.— In  the  Collection  of  M.  I,.  Douhle,  Paris. 


478 


CHRONICLES,  HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


Suetonius,  and  otter  Latin  writers,  undertaken  by  order  of  King  Charles  Y. 
There  were  six  handsome  copies  of  the  "  Chroniqiies  de  France ;"  foiir  or  five 
of  Vincent  de  Beauvais'  "  Miroir  Historial ; "  eight  Lives  of  St.  Louis,  com- 
l^rising,  doubtless,  that  written  by  Joinville ;  various  Histories  and  Chronicles 
of  events  bej^ond  the  seas  ("  Chroniques  d'Outre  Mer,"  as  they  were  called) ;  five 
or  sis  Chronicles  of  the  Popes  and  the  Emperors ;  a  number  of  Lives  of  the 
Fathers  and  of  the  Saints ;  a  few  foreign  Chronicles  translated  into  French 
(Fig.  366)  ;  narratives  of  battles  and  of  war,  &c.     But  in  these  inventories 


Fig.  368. — Portrait  of  Froiss.irt,  after  a  Kcd  Chalk  Drawing  preserved  in  the 
Town  Library,  Arras. 


there  is  not  a  single  work  of  history  written  in  Latin.  Most  of  the 
manuscripts  had  been  acquired  at  great  expense  by  Charles  V.,  who  read 
them  or  had  them  read  to  him,  and  who  appended  his  autograph  to  each  one. 
They  were  seized  or  purchased  in  1425  by  the  Duke  of  Bedford,  who  took 
them  to  England,  where  they  were  either  destroyed  or  dispersed,  and  the 
librarjr  of  the  French  kings  in  the  Louvre  had  to  be  reformed. 

The  fondness  of  Charles  V.  for  the  study  of  history  did  much  to  aid  the 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


479 


Fig.  369 
— M 
(No 


-Kin-  Charlos  VII.,  upon  qnitting  Ronon,  sets  out  to  besiege  the  Town  of  Harflour. 
iniature  from  the  "  Chroniques  do  Monstrelet.'-Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century 
2,679).— In  the  National  Library,  Faris. 


progress  of  that  bmnrli  of  literature.     That  sovereign,  a  friend  of  hferature 
and  of  men   of  letters,   like   his   two   brothers,    the   Due  dc   Berry  and   the 


4?o  CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 

Due  d'Anjou,  did  not  confine  liimself  to  the  composition  of  sumjotuous  Yolumes 
of  history,  hien  emripts  et  histories,  with  rich  bindings,  for  he  had  in  his 
household  several  translators — amongst  others,  Jean  de  Yignay  and  Laurent 
du  Premier-Fait^to  whom  he  gave  orders  what  Latin  or  Italian  works  he 
wished  to  have  translated  into  French ;  but  he  had  no  chronicler  holding  an 
official  title,  and  he  allowed  the  monks  of  St.  Denis  to  continue  their  task  of 
writing  in  Latin  the  history  of  his  reign — a  history  which  has  not,  unfor- 
tunately, been  preserved.  It  is  nevertheless  from  this  reign  that  dates  the 
personal  history  of  each  King  of  France,  Avritten  in  French  by  the  chroniclers 
of  the  King's  household.  Christina  de  Pisan,  who  was  at  once  a  poetess,  a 
philosopher,  and  an  historian-  (Figs.  371  and  372),  was  the  daughter  of  Thomas 
de  Pisan,  astrologer  to  Charles  V.,  and  she  was  therefore  enabled,  owing  to 
her  personal  jposition  at  court,  to  collect  all  the  particulars  for  the  "  Livre  des 
Faits  et  Bonnes  Mceurs  du  Poi  Charles  Y.,"  which  she  did  not  terminate 
until  1404.  At  this  period  the  poet  Eustache  Deschamps  was  royal  chronicler, 
and  he  was  engaged  in  writing  a  History  of  the  reign  of  Charles  VI.,  which, 
interrupted  probably  by  the  Avars  of  that  time,  never  appeared,  though  some 
traces  of  it  may,  perhaps,  be  found  in  the  ciirious  History  published  imder  the 
name  of  "  Jouvenel  des  Ursins."  The  author  of  this  latter  work  was  not  an 
ofiicial  chronicler,  for  he  held  the  dignity  of  Archbishop  of  Rheims,  and  he 
was  concerned  in  many  of  th&  stirring  events  which  he  describes.  After  him 
we  have,  as  mentioned  above,  a  true  French  chronicler  in  Jean  Chartier, 
though  his  description  of  the  reign  of  Charles  VII.  and  of  the  doings  of  Joan 
d'Arc  has  not  the  fire  which  it  might  have  possessed. 

During  each  reign  the  ofiicial  chronicler  of  France  prepared  the  materials 
for  a  history  of  the  sovereign,  but  this  history  was  not  necessarily  written, 
much  less  published.  Thus  Louis  XL  appears  to  have  systematically  hindered 
his  chronicler  from  completing  the  events  of  his  reign,  and  that  which 
appeared  towards  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century  with  the  inappropriate 
title  of  "  Chronique  Scandaleuse  du  'Roj  Louis  XL,"  and  under  the  name  of 
Jean  de  Troyes,  was  merely  the  outline  of  the  work  compiled  by  Pierre 
Desrey,  of  Troyes,  chronicler  of  France  under  Louis  XL,  and  the  only  reason 
for  entitling  this  Chronicle  scandalous  was  that  it  was  published  without  the 
royal  assent.  After  Pierre  Desrey,  Andre  de  la  Vigne  wrote,  partly  in  prose 
and  partly  in  verse,  the  "Vergier  d'Honneur,"  with  reference  to  the  bold 
expedition  of  Charles  VIII.  for  the  conquest  of  Naples.     The  wars  of  the 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIR: 


;s 


4.81 


Fig.  370. — Fabled  Origin  cf  the  Burgundy  Cross. — £tienne,  a  legendary  King  of  Burgundy, 
makes  a  Pilgrimage  to  St.  Victor  of  Marseilles,  to  whom  he  has  carried  the  Cross  of 
St.  Andrew,  out  of  gratitude  to  St.  Mary  Magdalene,  who  had  raised  him  and  his  Mother 
from  the  Dead.  This  Cross  afterwards  figured  in  the  Shield  of  the  House  of  Burgundy. — 
Miniature  from  the  "  Chroniques  do  Bourgogne." — Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century.— In 
the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


4«2  CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,  MEMOIRS. 

French  in  Italy  during  the  reign  of  Louis  XII.  were  recorded  by  Jean 
d'Auton,  who,  in  his  character  of  chronicler  of  France,  compiled  a  yery 
complete  Chronicle,  the  stj4e  of  which,  however,  was  pedantic  and  involved. 
This  deplorable  style  was  brought  into  fashion  by  the  historians  of  the  court 
of  Burgundy,  and  especially'  by  Canon  Jean  Molinet,  the  historiographer  of 
Margaret  of  Austria,  who  governed  the  Low  Countries  (Fig.  365).  Francois  I., 
Henri  II.,  and  their  successors,  down  to  Henri  IV.,  also  had  their  chroniclers 
and  historiographers,  who  received  their  salaries  without  ever  publishing  the 
result  of  their  labours.  One  of  these  historiographers,  Pierre  Paschal,  had 
made  a  great  stir  about  a  History  of  France,  which,  year  after  year,  he  was 
upon  the  point  of  publishing,  yet  when  he  died  in  1565  there  were  not  more 
than  twenty  pages  of  it  found  among  his  papers. 

History,  as  it  extended  its  domain,  gradually  increased  in  variety  of  tone 
and  style.  Upon  the  one  hand  the  lives  of  warriors  and  statesmen  were 
related  by  the  heralds,  the  esquires,  and  the  secretaries,  who  lived  in  their 
houses  and  had  witnessed  the  events  which  they  described ;  while  upon  the 
other  hand  these  warriors,  statesmen,  and  courtiers  themselves  wrote  or 
dictated  to  their  secretaries  and  servants  the  memoirs  of  their  time.  These 
jDrivate  Chronicles  and  Memoirs,  so  varied  and  so  interesting,  some  of  which 
are  anonymous,  show  that  their  various  authors  were  animated  by  the  desire 
of  outdoing  one  another  by  a  description  of  the  stirring  events  in  which  they 
had  participated.  The  ancient  Chronicle  of  the  Constable  Bertrand  Duguesclin 
was  doubtless  compiled  by  one  of  his  companions  in  arms,  and  the  "Chronique 
de  la  Pucelle  "  must  have  been  written  by  a  clerk  attached  to  the  religious 
service  of  Joan  of  Arc,  and  who  had  followed  her  from  her  entry  into  Orleans, 
when  besieged  by  the  English,  to  the  coronation  of  Charles  VII.  at  Rheims. 
GuiUaume  Gruel,  who  wrote  the  History  of  Arthur  III.,  Comte  de  Richemont, 
Duke  of  Brittany,  was  chronicler  to  the  latter  prince  ;  Jean  d'Oronville,  who 
wrote  the  life  and  heroic  deeds  of  Louis  II.,  Due  de  Bourbon,  great-grandson 
of  St.  Louis,  was  secretary  to  a  prince  of  the  house  of  Bourbon  under 
Charles  VII. ;  but  we  do  not  know  who  was  the  author  of  the  History  of 
Jean  le  Maingre,  surnamed  Boucicaut,  Marshal  of  France ;  and  it  has  only 
recently  been  discovered  that  Jean  Lefevre  de  St.  Remy,  King-at-arms  of  the 
Golden  Fleece,  composed  the  Chronicle  of  the  good  Chevalier  Jean  de  Lalaing, 
which  had  always  been  attributed  to  Georges  Chastelain.  We  have  never 
known  the  name  of  the  "  Loyal  Servitor  "  who  was  secretary  to  the  Chevalier 


CHROiXICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


4«3 


Bayard  ;  but  tlio  "  History  of  the  Deeds,  Acliicvcinenis,  Triuiiiplis,  and  Prowess 
of  the  good  Chevalier,  who  is  without  Fear  and  without  Reproach,  the  gentle 
Seigneur  de  Bayard,"  is  rightly  regarded  as  the  historical  masterpiece  of  the 
time  of  Francois  I. 

The  best  of  the  Memoirs  of  which  the  Sire  de  Joinville  had,  so  to  speak, 
furnished  the  model  are  those  rewritten  at  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  centur}' 
by  Philippe  de  Commines  (Fig.  37^3),  and  imblished  in  PV24  and  1-ViS  under 


FifT-  371. — Jliuiiituri-  from  the  "  Livro  de  Fails  d'Armea  et  de  Chcvalerie,"  by  Cluistiiia  dc  Pisan.- 
Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century.— In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


the  title  of  "  Chroniques."  M.  Ludovic  Lalanue  has  jjointed  out  with  great 
truth  that  he  was  the  first  Frenchman  to  write  the  history  of  his  time  with 
the  profundity,  the  discernment,  and  impartiality  of  a  man  who  had  jjassed 
his  life  in  public  affaii's.  The  style  of  these  Memoirs,  though  rather  tortuous 
and  wordy,  is  not  lucking  in  vigour  and  intensity.  In  addition  to  the 
Memoirs  of  Louis  XL's  favourite,  we  can  do  no  more  tluui  mentum  the 
Chronicle-memoirs  of  Pierre  Fenin,  Mathieu  de  Coucy,  Olivier  de  la  Marche 


484 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


(Fig.  374),  and  Jacques  du  Clercq,  all  of  wliom  were  attached  to  the  court  of 
Burgundy  in  the  fifteenth  century.  The  sixteenth  century  possessed  a  brilliant 
series  of  Memoirs,  from  those  of  the  Sire  de  Fleurange,  of  Martin  du  Bellay, 
and  of  the  Seigneur  de  Vieilleville  (compiled  by  his  secretary,  Carloix),  in  the 
reigns  of  Francois  I.  and  Henri  II.,  to  the  Memoirs  of  Gaspard  de  Saulx- 
Tavaunes,  Montluc,  Castelnau,  and  Marguerite  de  Valois  during  the  rest  of 
the  century.     The  Memoirs  of  Brantome  were  the  last  of  the  Valois  djTiast}^ 


Fig.  372. — Miniature  from  the  "  Livre  de  Fails  d'Armes  et  de  Chevalerie,"  by  Chi-istina  de  Pisan.- 
Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century. — In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


and  are  in  striking  contrast  to  the  "Economies  Royales,"  or  the  political 
Memoirs  in  which  the  Duo  de  Sully  described  the  reign  of  Henri  IV. 

But  the  sixteenth  century  cared  most  for  long  historical  works  and 
books  of  general  history.  The  "Chroniques  de  St.  Denis"  had  fallen 
into  undeserved  discredit  since  the  reign  of  Louis  XII.,  which  king  had 
brouo-ht  back  with  him  from  Verona  an  Italian  historian  who  wrote  in  Latm 


CHRONICLES,   HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


48s 


— Paolo  Emilio,  or  Paulus  ^■Einilius,  as  lie  was  then  called — and  commissioned 
him  to  rewrite  in  rhetorical  style  the  History  of  France,  which  PLobert  Gaguin 
had  obscured  with  the  jargon  of  scholasticism.  His  work,  "De  Pebus  Gestis 
Francormu,"  was  highly  appreciated  by  the  Humanists,  but  it  had  not  the 
success  of  Gaguin's  Chronicle,  which  was  reprinted  ten  times,  and  translated 
into  French  by  the  indefatigable  Pierre  Desrej^  The  booksellers  had  ordered 
from  the  above,  and  from  several  other  writers,  different  historical  compilations 


Fig.  373. — Portrait  of  Philippe  de  Cummines,  after  a  Red  Chalk  Drawing  preserved  io  the 
Town  Library,  Arras. 


entitled  the  "  Mer  dcs  Histoires,"  the  "  Rosier  Historial,"  &.c.  The  chroniclers 
and  historiographers  of  France,  who  turned  out  so  many  bulky  volumes  that 
one  might  imagine  they  had  written  with  both  hands,  nearly  all  comjjosed 
their  universal  History  of  France  ;  and  one  of  the  first  efforts  in  this  direction 
was  that  made  by  Nicole  Gilles,  notary  and  secretary  of  the  King,  who  had 
no  little  success,  for  the  "Annals  and  Chronicles  "  of  this  old  historian,  who 
died  in   1503,  went  through  numerous  editions  until  the  end  of  the  sixteenth 


486 


CHRONICLES,  HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


century,  thanks  to  the  additions  and  supplements  written  by  Belleforest  and 
Gabriel  Chapuis.  But  this  work  was  soon  eclipsed  by  the  more  complete 
Histories  published  almost  simultaneously  by  the  King's  historiographers, 
Bernard  Girard,   Sieur   du   Haillan,  Francois  de  Belleforest,   and  Jean  de 


Fig.  374. — Death  pi-esiding  over  Battles. — Miniature  from  tlie  "Chevalier  d^libere,"  by  Olivier 
de  la  M-irche. — Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century  (No.  173). — In  the  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


Serres.  The  folios  succeeded  each  other  with  amazing  rapidity,  j^et  they  did 
no  more  than  keep  pace  with  the  curiosity  of  the  public,  who  read  every  hue 
of  these  ponderous  volumes.  There  was  a  sort  of  historical  fever,  which  was 
only  aggravated  by  interminable  iucidonts  of  the  civil  wars  recorded  by  the 


CHROXICLKS,  HISTORIES,   MEMOIRS. 


487 


Protestant  writers,  La  Popeliuiere,  Jean  cle  La\al,  Agrippa  d'Aubigne.  A 
great  historian,  the  Polybius  and  Tacitus  of  France,  President  Jacques- 
Auguste  de  Thou,  wrote  an  excellent  Political  History'  of  France,  but  it 
has  the  fault  of  being  too  prolix,  and  of  being  written  in  enigmatic  Latin 
instead  of  iii  the  language  of  his  contemporaries,  Michel  de  Montaigne  and 
Henri  IV. 


Fig.  375. — The  Arms  of  Henry  V.  of  England,  joined  to  those  of  Catherine  de  Valoie,  his  Wife, 
Daughter  of  Charles  VI. — From  a  Missal  which  belonged  to  Charles  VI. — In  the  Library  of 
M.  Ambroise  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


THE    DRAMA. 


Disappearance  of  the  Ancient  Theatre.— First  Essays  of  the  Christian  Theatre.— Pious  Repre- 
sentations in  the  Churches.— The  Latin  Drama  of  Hrosvitha.— The  Mystery  of  Adam.— The 
Great  ilysteries. — Progress  of  the  Theatre  in  Europe. — Brothers  of  the  Passion  in  Paris. — 
Puhlic  Eepresentations.— The  Mystery  of  St.  Louis.— Comedy  since  the  Thirteenth  Century. 
— Jean  de  la  Halle.— The  Farce  de  Pathelin.— The  Bazoche.— The  Fnfants  sans  Souci.— The 
Theatre  in  Spain  and  in  Italy.— Creation  of  the  Literary  Theatre,  in  the  Sixteenth  Century, 
in  France. 

CTIXG  on  the  example  of  M.  Charles 
LouancLfe,  who  has  written  a  very  useful 
treatise  upon  the  origin  of  the  cLramatic  art, 
we  will  divide  the  history  of  the  Theatre 
into  four  distinct  period.?.  As  he  says, 
dui'ing  the  first  period — that  is  to  say,  from 
the  dawn  of  Christianity  to  the  seventh  cen- 
tury— the  Greco-Eoman  traditions  reigned 
supreme.  During  the  second  period,  from 
the  seventh  to  the  twelfth  centurj^,  the  pro- 
fane element  gave  way  to  Christian  inspiration  ;  the  theatre,  in  the 
modem  acceptation  of  the  term,  disappeared  altogether,  and,  absorbed 
in  the  ceremonial  of  public  worship,  preserved  nothing  but  the  Latin 
language  as  a  souvenir  of  Rome.  In  the  twelfth,  and  still  more  diu-ino- 
the  next  two  centuries,  the  sanctuary  ceased  to  have  a  monopoly  of 
scenic  representations;  the  priests  and  the  monks  were  gradually 
driven  from  the  stage  by  professional  actors,  and  though  Christian 
thought  was  still  the  dominating  feature  in.  the  great  dramatic  composi- 
tions of  the  time,  some  of  them  bore  traces  of  the  spirit  of  raillery  which 
afterwards  prevailed.  And  in  the  sixteenth  century  dramatic  art  under- 
went its  definite  transformation,  and,  by  an  alliance  of  Greco-Eoman  tradi- 
tions and  Christian  inspiration,  it  became  at  once  chivabous,  relio-ious, 
satirical,  national,  and  classic. 


THE  DRAMA. 


489 


Beyond  the  comedies  of  Plautus  and  of  Terence  (Figs.  376  to  380)  and  the 
tragedies  of  Seneca,  which  doubtless  continued  to  be  played  in  some  of  the 
towns  of  the  old  Roman  world  where  coi'rect  Latin  was  still  spoken,  we  Iciiow  of 
nothing  except  a  few  feeble  attempts  at  Christian  drama,  such  as  Clirixf 
Suffering,  attributed  to  Gregory  Nazianzen ;  Siisrin,  now  extinct,  wliicli  is 
said  to  have  been  written  by  John  Damascenus ;  a  Dialoriue  l/cf/nni  ^idnin 
and  Ere  in  the  earihhj  Favadhv,''  &c.  ;  and  it  is  quite  possible  that  these 
dramas  were  not  written  for  the  stage.    Christianity  had  condemned  all  kinds 


GCt/v' 


Fig.  376. — The  Slave  and  the  Lawyer. — Repre.sentative  Characters  of  the  Ancient  Theatre,  froui 
the  Comedies  of  Terence. — Manuscript  of  the  Tenth  Century. — In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


of  theatrical  representations :  tragedies,  comedies,  pantomimes,  and  circensiau 
games.  The  amphitheatres,  which,  with  the  pagan  temples,  constituted  the 
principal  ornaments  of  the  Roman  cities,  were,  like  the  temjDles,  abandoned 
as  the  new  faith  spread.  It  is  true  that  Chilperic,  King  of  the  Franks, 
constructed  in  577  a  circus  at  Paris,  and  another  at  Soissons  ;  but  the  dramatic 
art  being  at  that  time  unknown  in  Caul,  tlu'se  buildings  were  merely  arenas, 
in  which  apijeared  buffoons,  dancers,  and  performing  dogs  and  horses,  and  in 
which  were  still  given  the  combats  of  wild  animals.  The  theatre  disappeared 
in  the  shipwreck  of  ancient  society. 

3   It 


490 


THE  DRAMA. 


From  tlie  seventh  to  the  tenth  century  are  to  be  found  in  contemporary 
documents  two  kinds  of  scenic  representations — the  one  nomad  and  popular, 
the  other  religious  and  permanent ;  the  former  connected  more  or  less  with 
the  traditions  of  paganism,  the  second  betokening  vague  aspirations  of  a  new 
and  essentially  Christian  art.  The  nomad  and  popular  representations  were 
given  by  histrions,  who  exchanged  this  name  of  reproach  first  for  that  of 
chanteurs,  and  afterwards  for  that  of  jugglers  {jongleurs),  which  was  given 
them  by  the  public,  and  which  they  retained  throughout  the  Middle  Ages. 


Fig.  377. — The  Old  Man  and  tlie  Maid-servant. — Representative  Characters  of  the  Ancient 
Theatre,  from  the  Comedies  of  Terence. — Mann  script  of  the  Tenth  Century. — In  the  National 
Library,  Paris. 


Mounted  upon  common  trestles,  and  surrounded  by  buffoons,  mimics,  and 
musicians,  who  accompanied  their  utterances  with  gestures,  grimaces,  and 
wind  or  stringed  instruments,  thej'  declaimed  or  sang — it  can  scarcely  be  said 
acted — seriovis  or  comic  plays.  About  the  ninth  century,  however,  as  far  as 
can  be  ascertained  from  certain  passages  in  historians  of  that  time,  the 
performances  of  the  jugglers,  who  mostly  took  their  repertory  from  the 
legends  of  the  saints,  assumed  a  certain  dramatic  character.     Plain  narrative 


THE  ANCIENT  THEATRE. 


Miniature  from  the  TiSreJice,  of  Charles  VI ,  U.  S.  e  jeouted  at  the  beginning  of  the 
xv""  century.  N"  25.  B.L.  L.  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


THE  DRAMA. 


49' 


was  succeeded  bj'  dialogue,  and  several  singers  at  once  represented,  or  rather 
intoned,  religious  scenes,  which  were  called  urhanrp  cautiloiia',  or,  as  we  may 
translate  it,  songs  intended  to  be  sung  in  the  streets.  These  may  have  been 
theatrical  pieces,  but  it  is  quite  certain  that  the  Chiirch  forbade  her  clergy  to 
take  part  in,  or  even  to  witness  them. 

Nevertheless  there  were  given  in  the  churches  at  this  period,  upon  the 
principal  festivals,  regular  di-amatic  representations,  which  aj^pear  to  have 


r^vt  SI  TVS 


Fig.  378. — The  Parasite  and  the  Soldier. — Representative  Characters  of  the  Ancient  Theatre,  from 
the  Comedies  of  Terence. — llanuscript  of  the  Tenth  Centur)-. — In  the  National  Lihrary,  Paris. 


formed  an  integral  part  of  the  service,  and  the  elerg}'  in  these  representations, 
which  they  had  the  sole  charge  of,  acted  the  princiixil  e2:)isodcs  in  the  life  of 
Christ.  For  instance,  at  Christmas,  the  manger,  the  shepherds,  the  magi,  and 
even  the  star  which  led  them  to  Bethlehem  were  represented  at  the  mass,  and 
it  is  in  the  conversational  shape  of  certain  parts  of  the  scr^^ce  celebrated  at 
the  festivals  of  Christmas,  Easter,  and  Pentecost  that  are  to  be  foimd  the 
origin  of  the  Myatcry-plcvjH  and  Miraclc-plays  of  the  Middle  Ages. 


492  THE  DRAMA. 


Yet,  wliile  taking  into  account  these  representations,  whicli  long  held  a 
place  in  Catholic  liturgy,  it  may  be  affirmed  that  from  the  sixth  to  the  tenth 
century  there  was  not  throughout  Europe  either  a  theatre  or  any  theatrical 
works  in  the  strict  acceptation  of  the  word. 

To  Hrosvitha,  a  nun  in  the  Convent  of  Gandersheini,  and  a  native  of  Saxony, 
belongs  the  honour  of  having  composed  the  first  dramatic  works  worthy  of 
the  name ;  and  though  these  works  are  crude  and  barbarous,  they  are  none 
the  less  very  interesting  from  an  artistic  point  of  view.  It  is  said  that  she 
was  the  authoress  of  six  Latin  dramas  imitated  from  Terence,  which  were 
represented  before  the  nuns  of  her  abbey,  in  their  chapter-house,  about  the 
end  of  the  tenth  century.  The  dominant  idea  in  her  dramas  is  the  glorifica- 
tion of  chastity,  and  it  must  be  said  that  this  primitive  drama,  rude  and 
imperfect  as  it  may  appear,  contains  passages  which  would  be  admired  in  the 
greatest  masters  of  the  ancient  and  of  the  modern  stage. 

From  the  eleventh  to  the  thirteenth  century  it  was  the  custom  to  celebrate 
in  the  porches  of  churches,  and  even  within  the  sacred  building,  dramatized 
services,  in  which  the  j)rincipal  parts  were  played  by  the  clergy,  from  the 
canon  to  the  deacon,  and  which  were  used  as  an  introduction  to,  and  adorn- 
ment of,  the  holy  liturgy.  One  of  these  services,  entitled  Mystery  of  the 
Resurrection  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  has  come  down  to  us,  with  the  par- 
ticulars of  the  way  in  which  it  was  got  up,  and  the  music  pricked.  Three 
deacons,  arrayed  in  dabnaticas,  and  their  heads  covered  with  veils  "like 
women,"  says  the  text,  and  representing  the  three  Marys,  advanced,  with 
vases  in  their  hands,  to  the  middle  of  the  choir :  with  their  heads  bent 
downwards,  they  proceeded  to  the  desk,  singing  the  anthem,  "  Who  shall  roll 
away  for  us  the  stone  from  the  tomb  of  the  sepulchre  ?  "  A  chorister-boy, 
"  after  the  manner  of  an  angel,"  arrayed  in  a  white  alb  and  holding  a  pahn- 
branch,  addressed  them  this  question :  "  Whom  seek  ye  here  ? "  to  which 
the  three  deacons  rejDlied,  "  We  seek  Jesus  of  I^azareth."  Thus  the  mystery 
of  the  resurrection  seemed  to  be  accomplished  in  the  presence  of  the  people, 
before  whose  eyes  were  unfolded  the  majestic  scenes  of  the  gospel. 

Henceforward  a  new  kind  of  scenic  dialogue  was  formed  imder  the  name 
of  Mystery,  and  a  new  era  opened  for  theatrical  art.  Written  solely  in  Latin 
at  first,  the  mystery  was  gradually  put  into  the  vulgar  tongue,  so  as  to  be 
understood  by  the  general  public,  and  this  led  to  the  creation  of  certain  pieces 
called /'7;r//(or.'i,  half  Latin,  half  French,  upon  solemn  subjects.     It  was  not 


THE  DRAMA 


403 


until  the  tliirteentli  century  that  Latin  disappeared  altogether ;  but  the  three 
kinds  of  plaj'  adopted  from  that  time,  the  Latin  mystery,  the  mystery /rtrcfl 
(or  a  combination  of  Latin  and  French),  and  the  mj'stery  altogether  in 
French,  were  represented  simultaneously  until  the  migration  of  the  drama 
from  the  ceremonies  and  jorocessions  of  the  Church  to  the  jixiblic  streets  and 
squares  of  the  city — until,  in  fact,  it  exchanged  its  religious  for  a  secular 
character. 

It  is  no  easy  matter,  amidst  the  chaos  of  theatrical  productions  in  the 


B.-t  C  C  H^) 


Fig.  379.— Bacchis  and  the  Fisherman.— Representative  Characters  of  the  Ancient  Theatre,  from 
the  Comedies  of  Terence.— Manuscript  of  the  Tenth  Century.— In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


iliddle  Ages,  to  distinguish  precisely  between  them,  and  to  lay  do^-n  the 
.special  principles  of  each  dramatic  school.  It  may,  however,  be  said  that  the 
mystery  is  the  representation  of  a  fact  taken  from  the  Bible,  as  the  Miracle  is 
the  representation  of  a  fact  borrowed  from  the  legends  of  the  saints,  male  or 
female,  especially  from  the  story  of  their  martyrdom.  It  is  worthy  of  remark, 
at  the  same  time,  that  the  title  of  Mystery,  originally  very  limited  in  its 
application,  was  afterwards  applied  to  compositions  very  different  from  those 
to  which  this  name  was  at  first  given.    It  was  even  applied  to  dramatic  works, 


494  THE  DRAMA. 


the  subjects  of  which,  were  taken  from  the  traditions  of  chivalry,  such  as  the 
Mystere  de  Berte,  the  Mystere  d'Amis  et  d'Amile,  and  the  Mystere  de  Griselidis, 
played  in  1395  ;  or  to  the  pagan  and  mythological  traditions,  such  as  the 
Mystere  de  la  Destruction  de  Troie,  played  in  1459;  or  even  to  the  events  of 
contemporary  history,  such  as  the  Mystere  du  Siege  d' Orleans,  played  either 
during  the  lifetime  of  Joan  of  Arc,  or  soon  after  her  death. 

With  a  few  rare  exceptions,  the  mysteries  and  the  miracles  were  composed 
by  priests  or  by  monks,  which  is  to  be  attributed  to  the  fact  that  the  mem- 
bers of  the  clergy,  generally  better  educated  than  the  laity,  considered  the 
representation  of  sacred  pieces  as  the  most  practical  means  of  educating 
their  flocks,  who  welcomed  instruction  in  this  attractive  form  all  the  more 
heartily  because,  during  these  semi-barbarous  periods,  their  towns  were 
continually  laid  waste  or  menaced  by  the  triple  scourge  of  battle,  plague, 
and  famine. 

There  is  a  rather  long  list  of  the  authors  of  miracle-plays  and  mystery- 
plays  from  the  twelfth  to  the  fifteenth  century.  The  first  of  these  authors  is 
Hilaire,  disciple  of  Abelard,  who  composed,  rmder  the  title  of  Ludi  (plays), 
pieces  in  dialogue,  imitated  from  the  Old  and  the  JN^ew  Testaments.  The  last 
name  in  the  list,  at  the.  close  of  the  fifteenth  century,  is  that  of  the  "  very 
eloquent  and  very  scientific  "  and  still  more  prolific  doctor,  Jehan  Michel, 
Bishop  of  Angers,  author  of  the  celebrated  Mystery  of  the  Passion,  which 
another  Jehan  Michel,  his  brother  or  nephew,  revised  and  had  represented  in 
his  native  city.  The  oldest  vestige  of  dramatic  art  in  France  is,  bej^ond 
doubt,  a  Mystery  of  Adam  and  Ere,  written  in  French  about  the  middle  of  the 
twelfth  century,  which  we  discovered  in  1845  in  a  manuscript  at  the  Tours 
Library,  and  which  was  published  for  the  first  time  by  Victor  Luzarche  in 
1854.  This  mystery  or  drama  is  the  most  characteristic  type  of  the  dramatic 
representations  which  were  held  at  the  church  porticos. 

The  piece  entitled  Hepresentacio  Ade  (Representation  of  Adam)  is  divided 
into  three  acts  or  parts,  which  are  accompanied  by  a  chorus,  and  terminate  in 
an  epilogue.  The  first  act  comprises  man's  fall ;  the  second  the  murder  of 
Abel ;  and  the  third  the  appearance  of  the  prophets  to  announce  the  advent  of 
the  Saviour.  At  intervals  the  chorus  sings  Latin  verses,  and  the  epilogue 
consists  of  a  sermon  iipon  the  necessity  of  penitence.  The  manuscript 
containing  this  Bible  mystery  is  all  the  more  curious  because  it  gives  the 
complete  stage  arrangements  for  playing  it.     The  whole  is  preceded  hj  a 


THE  DRAMA. 


495 


short  summary  not  onl}^  of  the  theatrical  decorations  and  the  di'css  of  all  the 
actors,  but  also  as  to  their  attitude  and  gestures,  and  the  way  in  which  they 
are  to  play  their  parts.     We  will  give  a  brief  analysis  of  the  tirst  act,  in 


Fig.  380.— The  Cook.— Miniature  from  the  Turence  of  Charles  YI.— Manuscript  of  the  early  part  of 
the  Fifteenth  Century  (No.  23,  B.L).— In  the  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 

which  appear  four  persons  :  Figura  (or  God  in  human  form),  Adam,  Eve,  and 
the  Devil.    The  fir.st  scene  opens  in  the  Garden  of  Eden,  which  is  placed  upon 


496  THE  DRAMA. 


an  eminence,  and  is  bright  witli  sweet-smelling  flowers  and  fruit-trees.  God 
is  represented  as  wearing  a  dalmatica,  Adam  a  red  tunic,  and  Eve  a  peplum 
of  white  silk.  It  is  to  be  remarked  that  whenever  God  quits  the  stage,  he 
goes  back  into  the  church — a  fact  which  indicates  to  us  precisely  the  place 
where  the  representation  was  held.  The  oj)ening  part  of  the  scene  is  as  follows, 
after  the  original  text  in  old  French  :■ — • 


Adam ! 

ADAM. 

Sire  ! 

riGURA. 

Fourme  te  ai 
De  limo  terre, 

ADAM. 

Ben  le  sii. 

FIGURA. 

Je  t'ai  fourme  a  mun  serablaut, 
A  m' image :  ne  t'ai  fait  de  terre. 
Ne  ra'  devez  jamais  mover  guerre 

AUAM. 

Nen  ferai-je,  mais  te  crerrai ; 
Mun  creatur  obeirai. 

FIGURA. 

Je  t'ai  dune  bon  compainun  : 

Ce  eat  ta  femme,  Eva  a  noun  ; 

Ce  est  ta  ferame,  e  tun  pareil. 

Tu  li  deis  estre  bien  fiel  (Jide/e). 

Tu  aime  lui,  e  ele  aime  toi : 

Si  serez  ben  ambdui  (tons  deux)  de  moi. 

El'  seit  a  tun  comandement, 

E  vus  ambedeus  a  mun  talent. 

De  ta  coste  je  I'ai  fourmee  : 

N'est  pas  estrange,  de  toi  est  nee. 

Je  la  plasmai  [creai)  de  ton  cors. 

De  toi  eissit,  non  pas  de  fora. 

Tu  la  gouverne  par  raison  ; 

N'ait  entre  vus  ja  tendon  iquerelle) ; 

Mai.s  grant  amor,  grand  conservage  : 

Tel  soit  la  lei  de  mariage." 

God,  after  having  thus  addressed  Adam  and  Eve,  withdraws,  leaving  them 


THE  DRAMA.  ^^^ 


to  walk  about  the  garden,  playing  innuueutly  {Jioncnte  dclcctantv-'i).  The 
demons  approach  them,  and  show  Eve  the  fruits  of  the  tree  of  "ood  and  evil. 
The  Devil  then  appears,  and  counsels  Adam  to  pluck  the  forbidden  fruit. 
Adam  angrilj'  repels  him,  and  the  Devil  then  addresses  himself  to  Eve,  who 
makes  but  a  feeble  resistance  to  his  tempting.  Adam  compels  the  Devil  to  go 
away,  but  the  latter  i.s  seen  assuming  the  form  of  a  serpent  (a  mechanical 
serpent,  artificiose  compositus  as  it  was  called,  appeared  upon  the  stage),  which 
crawls  close  to  the  tree  of  good  and  evil.  Eve  yields  to  the  crafty^  advice  of 
Satan,  plucks  the  apple,  and  offers  it  to  Adam,  who,  after  refusing  to  take  it, 
eventually  eats  part  of  it.  He  at  once  sees  his  fault,  and  hides  in  a  bush,  in 
order  to  take  off  his  festal  garments  [solemnes  testes)  and  assume  a  costume  of 
leaves.  Eve  and  himself,  concealed  in  a  corner  of  Paradise,  are  afraid  to 
appear  before  God,  who  is  seen  walking  arraj^ed  in  pontifical  robes.  He 
calls  to  Adam  in  Latin,  "Adam,  ubi  es?"  At  length  the  two  culprits 
appear,  ashamed  and  repentant,  mutually  accusing  one  another.  God  drives 
them  from  Paradise,  informing  them  of  all  the  sorrows  which  await  them  cm 
earth.  An  angel,  robed  in  white  and  waving  a  flaming  sword,  stations 
himself  at  the  gate  of  Paradise.  In  the  last  scene  Adam  and  E\e  are 
laboriously  tilling  the  ground  and  sowing  corn,  but  during  their  sleeji  the 
Devil  plants  thorns  and  thistles  among  the  wheat.  When  they  awake  and 
behold  the  Devil's  work,  they^  prostrate  themselves  in  the  dust,  beat  their 
breasts,  and  abandon  themselves  to  despair.  The  Devil  calls  together  the 
demons,  who  load  Adam  and  Eve  with  chains,  and  drive  them  to  the  brink  of 
hell,  into  which  the  two  sinners  are  precipitated,  amidst  the  laughter  and 
yells  which  issue  from  the  flaming  abyss.  This  is  the  analysis  of  the  first  act, 
which  fonns  a  complete  play  of  itself,  and  which  embodies  the  three  elements 
of  tragedy,  pantomime,  and  opera. 

The  dramatic  movement  which  took  place  in  France  in  the  twelfth  century 
was  not  peculiar  to  that  country.  In  the  year  1110  the  Norman  poet 
Geoffrey  had  played  at  Dunstable,  in  Bedfordshire,  the  Miracle  de  St. 
Catherine,  which  was  very  much  admired  by  the  Anglo-Normans.  Mention 
is  made  in  a  Chronicle  of  Frioul  of  the  representation  of  a  Latin  mystery  m 
1218.  In  Germany  the  Passion  Play  was  given  in  the  Cathedral  of  Vienna, 
and  the  Sepulchre  of  Our  Lord  in  the  heart  of  Bohemia  about  1437.  Long 
before  this,  Amiorican  Brittany  had  provided  the  faithful  with  a  mystery 
written   in   the  national  dialect   upon  the  Life  of  St.   Nonne,  which  certain 


498  THE  DRAMA. 


critics  hold  to  be  of  earlier  date  than  the  twelfth  century,  and  which  is  still 
represented  in  the  country  districts  of  Brittany; 

These  dramas — French,  German,  English,  Italian,  and  Breton — all  com- 
posed in  the  same  spirit  of  fervent  piety,  were  produced  at  almost  the  same 
time  in  all  countries,  and  in  abnost  the  same  shape.  They  were  conceived, 
written,  and  plaj^ed  by  priests  or  by  monks.  But  the  laymen  in  course  of 
time  competed  with  the  clergy  for  theatrical  representations,  and  it  may  he 
said  that  the  whole  of  Christendom  then  took  j^art  in  the 'performance  of 
the  mysteries  and  the  miracles. 

In  most  European  countries,  notably  in  France,  from  the  twelfth  century, 
each  art  or  trade  was  organized  as  a  religious  association  {coiifrerie)  as  soon  as 
it  had  constituted  itself  into  an  industrial  or  trade  corporation.  Having  their 
origin  in  local  feeling  and  political  emancipation,  these  associations  were  in 
many  instances  dramatic  companies,  enjoying  the  favour  of  the  magistracy 
and  clergy  of  the  town.  Moreover,  all  classes  of  the  population  were  invited 
to  take  parts  in  the  jpublic  representations  of  these  great  sacred  dramas,  in 
which  as  many  as  six  hundred  persons  sometimes  figured.  The  Church,  so 
severe  at  first  with  regard  to  the  secular  theatre,  relaxed  her  regvdatious  in 
this  respect,  and  encouraged  those  who  took  part,  as  actors  or  spectators,  in 
these  edif j'ing  spectacles,  which  revived  the  principal  facts  of  Bible  history, 
and  popularised  the  triumph  of  the  Christian  religion.  The  municipalities, 
for  their  part,  encouraged  and  remunerated  the  authors  and  the  actors,  and 
had  numerous  copies  taken  of  these  pious  compositions,  the  official  text  of 
which  was  deposited  in  the  archives  of  the  town. 

As  long  as  the  mysteries  and  miracles  preserved  their  exclusively  liturgical 
character,  the  persons  who  figured  in  them  as  actors  were  not  considered  to 
exercise  any  special  profession,  but  rather  a  sort  of  religious  function.  Thus, 
from  the  fourteenth  centuiy,  the  champions  of  the  dogma  of  the  Inimacvdate 
Conception,  which  had  not  as  yet  been  proclaimed  by  the  Church,  formed 
dramatic  associations  for  the  purpose  of  propagating  this  dogma  by  playing 
the  M//sferies  of  Our  Lady,  composed  in  honour  of  the  Virgin  Mary,  who 
conceived  without  sin  (Fig.  381).  Amongst  these  confreres,  all  of  whom 
wore  the  ecclesiastical  dress  as  a  symbol  of  their  clerical  origin,  there  were 
some  who  entitled  themselves  "  Brothers  of  the  Passion,"  and  they  soon 
established  a  permanent  theatre  in  the  vUlage  of  St.  Maur-des-Fosses,  near 
Paris,  in  1398.      This  theatre  was  almost  at  once  closed  by  order  of  the 


THE  DRAMA. 


499 


Provost  of  Paris,  doubtless  at  the  request  of  the  clergy  of  the  capilal,  who 
complained  that  their  parishioners  neglected  the  Church  services  to  go  and 
see  the  play  of  the  Brothers  of  the  Passion.  But  four  years  afterwards 
King  Charles  VI.  accorded  them  letters  patent,  dated  December  4th,  1402, 
and  they  wore  no  longer  interfered  with  in  the  exercise  of  their  \-ocati(iu. 
After  having  obtained,  by  these  letters  patent,  permission  to  continue  their 
plays  and  to  show  themselves,  even  in  theatrical  costume,  in  the  streets  of 
Paris,  they  obtained  from  the  monks  of  the  Trinity  Hospital  (in  the  Pue  St. 
Denis,  opposite  the  Rue  Grenetat),  a  long  low  room,  in  which  thej^  opened 
the  first  permanent  and  covered  theatre  which  was  founded  in  Paris,  and  here 


Fig.  381.— The  Hermit  forces  Robert  le  Diable  to  declare  his  Identity.— Minialure  from  the 
"  Sliracle  de  Nostre-Dame  et  de  Robert  le  Dyable."— Manuscript  of  the  Fourteenth  Century. 
— In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


they  gave  representations  every  Sunday  and  fete  day  from  twelve  to  five  m 
the  afternoon. 

Long  after  this  the  mysteries  and  miracles  continued  to  be  represented 
in  the  provinces,  the  places  selected  being  consecrated  ground  and  graveyards. 
The  Synodic  Statutes  of  Orleans  oven  show  that  the  representation  of  scenic 
play  stook  place  in  the  cathedral,  probably  in  front  of  the  portico,  as  late  as 
1525  and  1587.  The  same  was  the  case  all  over  Europe  up  to  the  middle  of 
the  sixteenth  century.  Under  the  pontificate  of  Innocent  VIII. ,  about  1490, 
Lorenzo  de'  Medici,  upon  the  occasion  of  the  marriage  of  his  daughter  to  a 


Soo  THE  DRAMA. 


nephew  of  the  Pope,  himself  composed  a  Mysterij  of  St.  John  and  St.  Paul, 
which  he  had  represented  by  several  members  of  his  family  inside  one  of  the 
Florence  chui'ches. 

The  people  of  the  Middle  Ages,  from  the  very  fact  that  their  existence 
was  more  monotonous  than  that  of  the  people  of  the  present  day,  were  all  the 
more  ready  to  seize  an  opportunity  for  amusement,  and  the  solemn  representa- 
tions of  the  mysteries  were  amongst  their  most  cherished  enjojrments.  The 
entrance  of  the  King  or  Queen  into  a  town,  the  birth  of  a  prince  or  princess,  the 
court  festivals,  as  well  as  the  ecclesiastical  solemnities  and  the  feasts  of  the 
Church,  were  an  excuse  for  these  popular  spectacles.  The  representations, 
prepared  a  long  time  beforehand,  were  announced  by  the  public  crier,  like 
the  royal  and  municipal  decrees,  at  the  most  frequented  places  of  the  town.  The 
spectators,  who  had  not  to  pay  anything  for  witnessing  the  play,  did  not  seat 
themselves  firomiscuously,  but  each  person  according  to  his  rank  and  station. 
The  nobles  or  dignitaries  occupied  platforms,  upon  which,  as  the  representations 
lasted  a  long  time,  they  sometimes  had  their  meals  served,  like  the  old  Romans 
upon  the  balconies  of  the  amphitheatre  or  circus.  The  plain  bourgeois  and 
the  lower  classes  occupied  places,  either  seated  or  standing,  upon  the  bare 
earth  or  the  pavement,  as  the  case  might  be,  the  men  being  to  the  right,  and 
the  women  to  the  left,  the  same  as  in  church.  The  local  clergy,  in  order  to 
let  their  congregations  have  an  opportunity  of  witnessing  the  whole  spectacle, 
advanced  or  j)ut  back  the  hour  of  divine  service.  In  fact,  the  fondness  of  the 
public  for  these  spectacles  was  so  great  that  the  houses  were  left  almost 
deserted,  and  armed  watchmen  paced  the  silent  streets  to  protect  the  property 
of  the  inhabitants  while  the  representation  was  taking  place. 

There  were  not  as  yet  anj'  permanent  theatres  in  the  towns,  bu.t  the 
dimensions  of  the  temporary  theatres  erected  were  regulated  according  to  the 
number  of  actors  who  had  to  appear  upon  the  stage.  As  a  matter  of  course, 
when,  as  in  the  thirteenth  and  fourteenth  centuries,  the  only  pieces  represented 
were  episodical  dramas,  such  as  the  Miracles  de  Not  re- Da  me,  these  theatres 
were  not  nearly  so  large  or  so  complicated  as  when  there  came  to  be  repre- 
sented the  great  poems  or  mystery-plays  of  the  Old  Testament,  the  Passion, 
and  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles.  The  theatre  and  the  platforms  used  for  these 
public  representations,  which  often  lasted  several  daj^s,  must  have  been  of 
immense  dimensions,  and  have  entailed  considerable  expense. 

M.  Charles  Magnin,  in  his  work  upon  theatrical  archaeology,  says,  "The 


THE  DRAMA.  501 


Miracles  dc  Notre-Damr  did  not  require  more  than  two  stories  or  stalls,  the 
one  raised  above  the  other.  The  upper  story  represented  Paradise,  in  which 
were  seated  \vpon  a  throne  God  and  the  Virgin,  surrounded  by  their  celestial 
court.  The  lower  story  was  reserved  for  the  human  scenes,  and  divided  by 
partitions  and  tapestry  into  as  many  chambers  or  compartments  as  there  were 
different  places  to  rejiresent.  The  upj^er  story  (Heaven)  commimicated  with 
the  lower  (Earth)  by  means  of  two  spiral  staircases  placed  at  each  side  of  the 
stage.  It  was  by  these  that  descended  and  reascended  in  procession  God, 
the  Virgin,  and  the  Angels,  when  they  manifested  themselves  to  the  inha- 
bitants of  Earth.  The  floor  of  the  theatre,  the  area,  or,  as  it  would  now 
be  called,  the  pit,  was  formed  of  the  turf  of  a  meadow  or  graveyard;" 
unless,  that  is  to  say,  the  town  in  which  the  representation  was  to  take  place 
possessed  the  remains  of  some  ancient  theatre,  in  which  case  it  was  utilised 
for  the  occasion.  This  indirect  use  of  the  pagan  theatres  for  the  religious 
plays  of  the  Middle  Ages  took  place  all  over  Europe  before  the  Brothei's 
of  the  Passion  and  other  similar  associations  had  acquired  permanent  and 
covered  buildings.  In  about  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century  the  per- 
manent and  provisional  theatres  increased  in  size  in  proportion  as  the  frame- 
work of  the  mystery-plays  represented  in  them  became  enlarged.  To  the  two 
primitive  stories  were  superadded  a  number  of  compartments  intended  to 
represent  in  perspective,  upon  different  planes  and  at  different  elevations. 
Heaven,  Hell,  the  World,  Jerusalem,  Egypt,  Rome,  the  house  of  St.  Joseph, 
&c.  The  actors,  while  they  were  upon  the  stage,  moved  into  one  of  these 
compartments,  designated  by  placards  or  inscriptions,  every  time  that  the 
place  in  which  the  scene  was  laid  changed,  and,  after  having  "done  then- 
play,"  they  leisurely  resumed  their  place  upon  the  raised  seats  of  the  theatre. 
As  far  as  can  be  judged  by  the  few  documents  relating  to  this  subject, 
there  were  two  kinds  of  scenery;  the  one  kind  painted  as  in  the  present 
day,  the  other  constructed  of  wood,  or  even  stone,  which  had  a  regularly 
embossed  surface.  Moreover,  as  the  spectators  would  often  have  experienced 
much  difficulty  in  following  the  plot  amidst  the  host  of  persons  who  appeared 
upon  the  stage,  and  the  frequent  change  from  one  place  to  another,  the  author 
always  offered  in  an  explanatory  prologue  some  general  notices  which  enabled 
them  to  understand  what  was  going  on.  He  would  say,  for  instance,  ""We 
are  about  to  narrate  the  blessed  Resurrection.  Let  us  first  arrange  the  stage 
accordingly.     Here  the  Cross,  and  there  the  Tomb.  .  .  .  Hell  will  be  on  this 


502  THE  DRAMA. 


side ;  the  house  upon  the  other ;  then  Heaven.  .  .  .  Caiaphas  will  take  his 
place  here,  and  with  him  the  Jewish  people  ;  next,  Joseph  of  Arimathea.  .  .  . 
In  the  fourth  compartment  will  be  seen  Nicodemus.  .  .  .  We  shall  also  repre- 
sent the  town  of  Emmaus,  in  which  Jesus  Christ  was  entertained." 

In  addition  to  these  prologues  addressed  to  the  public  by  the  author  or  by 
the  "director  of  the  play,"  we  meet  in  some  of  the  mysteries  with  short  sermons 
in  prose  delivered  by  priests,  who  appeared  upon  the  stage  in  their  stoles  to 
excite  the  devotion  of  the  actors  and  audience.  Sometimes  even  a  high  mass 
would  be  held  just  before  the  representation,  as  a  preparation  for  witnessing 
a  piece  in  which  was  to  be  given  an  episode  in  the  life  of  our  Lord  (Fig. 
382)  or  the  martyrdom  of  some  saint.  When  these  religious  dramas  were 
still  played  in  the  churches  they  generally  terminated  with  a  Te  Deum  or  a 
Magnificat,  sung  by  the  principal  actor  when  he  reached  the  end  of  his  part. 
As  a  rule,  the  play  was  not  begun  vintil  all  the  actors  who  were  to  appear  in 
it  had  "  done  the  show,"  as  it  was  called,  either  on  foot,  or  on  horseback,  or 
in  a  carriage ;  that  is  to  say,  had  exhibited  in  the  streets  not  only  the  costumes 
to  be  worn,  but  the  engines  or  m.echanical  contrivances  to  be  used  on  the 
stage.  The  rejDresentation  once  begun,  the  actors  who  were  not  required  on 
the  stage  were  compelled,  in  the  intervals,  to  remain  in  view  of  the  audience, 
seated  upon  benches  placed  at  each  side  of  the  theatre,  for  the  "  slips  "  were 
not  then  invented  to  increase  the  optical  illusion  by  favouring  the  entry  or 
egress  of  the  plaj'ers.  The  unity  of  time  was  altogether  disregarded,  as  well 
as  the  unity  of  place.  Thus,  for  instance,  in  representing  the  history  of 
Notre-Darae,  a  child  of  four  or  five  years  old  wovild  take  the  part  of  Mary  in 
the  beginning  of  the  piece,  and  wovdd  be  succeeded,  as  the  plaj^  progressed,  by 
another  girl  fifteen  or  sixteen  years  old,  who  would  in  her  turn  be  suc- 
ceeded by  a  third  person  to  represent  Mary  when  married  to  Joseph,  and  the 
mother  of  Jesus.  The  result  of  this  triple  change  was  that  the  spectators  had 
before  them,  upon  the  benches  three  incarnations  of  one  and  the  same  person, 
each  of  a  dilferent  age,  appearance,  and  dress. 

It  may  be  guessed  that  there  was  no  great  accuracy  with  regard  to  dress 
in  these  representations.  The  playwrights  and  actors,  or  dramatic  poets,  who 
represented  the  funeral  of  Julius  Caesar  with  choristers  bearing  the  crucifix 
and  holy  water,  did  not  trouble  themselves  about  historical  and  archaeological 
truth.  But,  excepting  these  primitive  errors,  it  may  safely  be  said  that  the 
theatre  of  the  fifteenth  century  was  little  inferior,  in  point  of  splendour  and 


504  THE  DRAMA. 


magnificence,  to  the  modern  stage.  There  were  some  very  quaint  costumes 
assigned  by  tradition  to  certain  parts.  Thus  the  devils  were  always  in  black, 
and  the  angels  in  'w^hite,  blue,  and  red ;  while,  as  the  priestly  garment  was 
looked  upon  as  the  most  worthy  of  respect,  God  was  always  represented  with 
cope  and  stole,  and  a  bishop's  mitre  or  a  pope's  tiara.  The  actors  who  had  to 
rej)resent  the  dead  dressed  "  as  souls  ; "  that  is  to  say,  they  covered  themselves 
with  a  veil — white  for  the  saved,  red  or  black  for  the  lost.  In  the  Mistere  du 
Vieux  Testament,  in  which  it  was  desired  to  represent  the  blood  of  Abel  shed 
by  Cain,  the  actor  who  had  to  represent  this  blood  was  wrapped  in  a  large 
red  cloak,  and  writhed  at  the  feet  of  the  murderer,  crying,  "  Vengeance  ! " 

The  mysteries,  some  of  which  contained  seventy  or  eighty  thousand  lines, 
would  have  taken  several  consecutive  weeks  to  play  through,  so  that,  in  order 
to  give  players  and  the  public  breathing-time,  an  interval  of  several  daj^s 
Avas  given  after  each  rejjresentation,  and  when  the  play  was  resumed  the 
attendance  was  as  numerous  as  at  the  beginning.  As  M.  Louandre  justly 
observes,  "Could  it  be  otherwise?  The  public  beheld  in  a  living  and 
animated  form  the  world  of  the  past  and  of  the  future,  the  Paradise  of  their 
first  parents,  and  the  Paradise  in  which  they  would  one  day  contemplate  their 
God.  They  looked  at  all  this  with  the  eyes  of  faith,  and  the  influence  of  this 
sacred  drama  was  not  a  triumph  of  art,  but  a  miracle  of  belief.  Of  art,  in 
fact,  there  were  but  a  few  flashes  in  these  compositions,  at  once  barbarous  and 
artless,  and  in  which  were  reflected  the  real  and  the  fantastic  world,  sacred 
history  and  profane." 

The  miracles,  which  contained,  like  the  mysteries,  so  many  touching  and 
graceful  passages,  are  filled  with  singular  details,  which  the  careful  historian 
should  on  no  account  overlook.  This  simple-minded  and  confused  accumula- 
tion of  dissonant  ideas  did  not  exclude  the  shrewd  humour  which  we  find  in 
all  the  French  poems  of  the  fifteenth  century.  It  is  a  mistake,  therefore,  to 
say  that  the  miracles  contained  neither  satires  on  manners  nor  allusions  to 
contemporary  events,  and  numerous  instances  might  be  cited  in  contradiction. 
Thus,  in  the  miracles  composed  and  j)layed  in  the  reign  of  Charles  VI.,  Queen 
Isabeau  of  Bavaria,  and  her  brother-in-law,  the  Duke  of  Orleans,  are  severely 
assailed ;  the  court,  too,  is  very  roughly  handled ;  the  military  party  is 
inveighed  against ;  and  even  the  clergy  do  not  always  escape.  In  many 
parts  of  these  popular  pieces  the  noble  inspiration  of  the  poet  bursts  forth 
beneath  the  coarse  envelope  of  an  as  yet  imperfect  language.     It  will  be 


THE  DRAMA.  505 


sufficient  to  cite,  as  a  model  of  sombre  and  tragic  force,  the  followino-  dialoo-uc 
between  Judas  and  the  Demon  : — 


LE    DEMON. 

Meschant,  que  veulx-tu  qu'on  te  fasse? 
A  quel  port  veulx-tu  aborder  ? 

JVDAS. 

Je  ne  sais.     Je  n'ai  wil  en  face 
Qui  ose  lea  C:eulx  regarder. 

LE    DEMON. 

Si  de  mon  nom  veulx  demander, 
Briefvemeut  en  auras  demonstrance. 

JUDAS. 

D'oii  viens-tu  ? 

LE    DEMON. 

Du  parfoud  d'erifer. 

JUDAS. 

Quel  est  (on  nom  ? 

LE   DEMON. 

Desesperance. 


Ttnibilite  de  vengeance! 
Horribilite  de  dangler ! 
Approche  et  me  doune  allegcance, 
Se  mort  peut  mon  deuil  allcgier. 

LE    DEMO.V. 

Oui,  ties-bien."  .  .  . 


In  stiikinff  contrast  with  tliis  gi'and  scene  between  Judas  and  the  Demon, 
we  will  quote  a  model  of  gi'acefuluess  and  artlessness — the  Shejiherd's  scene 
in  the  great  Mydenj  of  the  Pa^siou,  by  the  brothers  Arnold  Greban,  a 
mystery  far  superior  tu  that  which  Jchan  Michel  composed  on  the  same 
subject : — 

3  T 


So6  THE  DRAMA. 


"  UN    EERGER. 

Est-il  liesse  plus  serie  {^joie  plus  sereiiie) 
Que  de  regarder  ces  beaux  champs 
Et  ces  doulx  aignelets  paissans, 
Saultans  a  la  belle  praerie  ? 

SECOND    BERGER. 

On  parle  de  grand  seignourie, 
D'avoir  donjons,  palais  puissans  ; 
Est-il  liesse  plus  serie 
Que  de  regarder  ces  beaux  champs, 
Et  ces  doulx  aignelets  paissans, 
Saultans  a  la  belle  praerie  ? 

TR0ISlJ)ME    EERGER. 

En  gardunt  leurs  brebiettes, 

Pasteurs  ont  bon  temps  : 
Us  jouent  de  leurs  musettes, 

Liez  [joijeux]  et  esbatans  ; 
La  dient  leurs  chansonnettes, 
La  sont  les  doulces  bergercttes 

Qui  vont  bien  chantans, 

Et  belles  fleurettes  ... 

Pasteurs  ont  bon  temps ! " 

Nothing  can  be  more  touching  than  the  scene  from  the  Mystere  de 
St.  Louis,  in  which  Enguerrand  de  Conchy,  the  savage  hunter,  having 
surprised  three  youths  shooting  at  his  rabbits,  hands  them  over  without 
remorse  to  the  executioner.  The  latter,  with  his  assistant's  help,  at  once 
hangs  them  to  the  gibbet,  not,  however,  without  manifesting  a  feeling  of  pity 
which  forms  the  most  striking  contrast  with  the  unflinching  severity  of  his 
sinister  profession : — 

"  DEUXlilME    ENFANT. 

{Apres  qifc  le  premier  a  He  pendii.) 

.  .  .  Helas !  que  diront 
Nos  nobles  parens,  quand  sauront 
Nostre  mort  tres-dure  et  amere  ? 

TROISI^ME    ENFANT. 

Je  plains  mon  pere. 

DEUXifeME    ENFANT. 

Et  moi,  ma  mere. 


THE  DRAMA.  joy 


ENGVERRAND,  au  hourremt. 
Meshui  (<i  present)  depeschc-le,  paillart ! 

[Le  bourreau  le  jette,  c'est-a-dire  le  pend.) 


LE    liOVRREAU. 


Le  voila  depesche  eoudain. 
L' autre  ? 

LE    TALET. 

Je  le  tiens  par  la  main. 
11  est  tendre  comme  rosee, 
Le  jeune  enfant. 

LE   BOURUEAU,  (i  SOU  ralet . 

Tay-toi  I     Tay-toi  ! 
A  V enfant  : 
Mon  amy,  muntez  apres  moi, 
Et  pens^z  a  Dieu!" 


Thus  all  styles  are  to  be  found  mixed  up  the  one  with  the  other  in  the 
great  dramas  of  the  Middle  Ages,  which  are  at  once  mystic  and  grotesque, 
sombre  and  joyous,  trivial  and  solemn.  Men,  angels,  earthly  kings,  and  the 
King  of  kings  pass  in  turn  before  the  audience,  and  for  several  centuries 
all  the  theatrical  compositions  which  appear  by  the  side  of  the  sacred  are 
only,  so  to  speak,  detached  chapters — hraiwhes,  to  emjiloj'  the  term  then  in  use. 

Tragedy  did  not  exist  in  the  Middle  Ages,  and  it  is  a  mistake  to  imagine 
that  the  Provencal  poets  or  troubadours,  Arnaut  Daniel,  Anselme  Faidit,  and 
Berenger  de  Parasol  were  the  principal  /actors  of  tragedy  in  the  twelfth  and 
thirteenth  centuries.  This  fonn  of  dramatic  composition  did  not  assume 
definite  shape  until  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century,  when  Baif  and 
Thomas  Sibilet  produced  a  few  imitations  of  the  Greek  tragedies,  and  when 
Jodelle  represented,  in  lo52,  Clvopntra,  which  must  be  considered  as  the  first 
French  tragedy  in  verse. 

Comedy  had  already  been  in  existence  for  a  considerable  period,  for  it 
may  be  said  that  the  vein  of  comedy  is  essentially  Gallic,  and  the  nearer  we 
come  to  the  Renaissance,  the  faster  docs  this  vein  expand  itself  upon  our 
stage,  which  has  continued  to  be  without  a  rival  in  the  waj'  of  tragedy  as 
of  comedy.  In  the  thirteenth  century,  Adam  de  la  Ilalc,  nicknamed  the 
Hunchback  of  Arras,  produced  the  first  French  comedy,  called  the  Jen  de 
Mariage  d'Adam,  or  the  Jen  de  la  FeuilUe,  and  the  first  comic  opera,  a  sort 
of  pastoral,  entitled  Le  Jen  de  lluhin  et  de  Marion,  of  which  he  composed  the 


5o8 


THE  DRAMA. 


■words  and  music.  These  two  ancient  pieces,  as  well  as  tlie  famous  Farce 
de  Pathelin  (Figs.  383  and  384),  wliicli  dates  from  the  second  half  of  the 
fifteenth  century,  and  which  long  enjoyed  a  uniTersal  reputation,  are  in  all 
respects  very  remarkable  productions.  If  the  author  of  the  Farce  de  Pathelin 
were  known,  his  name  would  rank  beside  that  of  Moliere. 

The  comic  pieces  of  the  Middle  Ages,  which  were  called  jeux,  soties,  or 
farces,  are  for  the  most  part  notable  for  their  fund  of  humour  and  gaiety. 


Fig.  383.— Pathelin  taking  the  Piece  of  Cloth         Fig.  384.— Pathelin  pleading  for  the  Shepherd 
■which  he  steals  from  the  Draper.  before  the  Judge. 

Fac-aimilea  of  "Wood  Engravings  of  the  "  Farce  de  Pathelin"  (Gothic  Edition,  Paris,  Germain 

Beneaut,  1490,  in  4to). 


They  may  be  considered,  according  to  the  taste  of  the  present  day,  rather  too 
broad,  but  we  must  make  allowance  for  the  time,  as  these  crude  expressions 
did  not  offend  the  taste  of  the  age,  and  passed  muster  with  the  most  polished 
court  in  Europe.  The  Moralites  stand  midway  between  the  farces,  of  which 
they  possess  the  satirical  spirit,  and  the  mysteries,  of  which  they  imitate  to  a 
certain  extent  the  moral  and  religious  tendencies.     They  were  not  more  than 


THE  DRAMA. 


509 


a  portrayal,  sometimes  even  a  criticism,  upon  tlie  Cluirdi  in  its  liniiian  mikI 
temporal  aspects;  canons,  bishops,  cardinals,  and  oven  popes  are  not  sjjurcd, 
and  the  actor — that  is  to  say,  the  author — shows  no  mercy  in  his  condemnation 
of  the  vices  and  faults  which  he  can   discern  in  them.     The    moralitc  also 


Fig.  385.— The  Actor  (Author)  listening  to  the  Personification  of  his  Thought.— Miniature  from 
the  "  Chevalier  delibere,"  by  Olivier  de  la  Marche.— Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Century 
(No.  173,  B.L.).— In  the  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 

deals  with  the  kings  and  temporal  nciliility,  and,  often  assuming  a  political 
character,  calls  them  to  account  for  their  public  or  private  cotuluct.  Some- 
times, again,  a  fact  taken  from  the  sacred  books,  or  some  idea  occurring  to  the 


510  THE  DRAMA. 


poet,  furnishes  the  theme  for  a  sort  of  moralite  which  may  be  described  as 
legendary.  For  instance,  the  Histoire  de  l' Enfant  Prodigue,  the  Laz  d' Amour 
Bivin,  the  Histoire  de  8te.  Suzanne,  exemplaire  de  toutes  femmes  sages  et  de 
tous  les  hons  juges,  are  moralites  in  which  religious  mysticism  is  allied  to 
the  teachings  of  practical  wisdom,  and  the  characters  in  which — Envy  Reason, 
and  Good  Renown — are  introduced  into  the  plot,  like  the  Chorus  of  ancient 
tragedy,  to  control,  judge,  and  appreciate  the  respective  position  of  the 
personages  in  the  drama,  into  which  the  author  then  introduces  a  sort  of 
dialogue,  or  moral  and  allegorical  poem,  similar  to  the  Chevalier  deliMre  of 
Olivier  de  la  Marche  (Fig.  385). 

The  soties,  farces,  and  moralites  were   never  put   upon  the  stage  with 
the  splendour  of  the  mysteries,  and  save  with  a  few  exceptions,  the  number 


Fig.  386. — Portrait  of  Clement  Marot. — Fac-simile  of  an  Engraving  by  Leonard  Gaultier,  from 
the  Series  known  as  "  Chronologie  collee." — In  the  Library  of  M.  Ambroiae  Firmin-Didot, 
Paris. 


of  the  personages  introduced  was  always  very  small.  Moreover,  a  capital 
difference  is  to  be  established  between  these  two  kinds  of  spectacle,  A^iz.  that 
the  mysteries  were  represented,  so  to  speak,  by  everybody  and  for  everybody, 
under  the  patronage  of  the  Church,  whereas  the  farces,  soties,  and  moralites 
were  played  for  a  special  public  by  private  companies  of  laymen,  who  were,  no 
doubt,  regular  comedians. 

The  jugglers  and  tale-tellers,  who  were  many  of  them  authors  of  satirical 
and  amusing  poems,  which  they  went  about  reciting  from  place  to  place,  to  the 
accompaniment  of  the  violin,  might  be  regarded  as  the  first  actors  of  secular 
pieces ;  for  not  only  did  they  sojourn  in  the  castles  of  the  nobles  to  recite 
their  poems,  but  they  performed  plays  in  character,  which  were  in  realit}^ 
scenic    romances    and   dialogues,  such   as   the  metrical  tale,  "Aucassin  and 


THE  DRAMA. 


5" 


Nicolette."  After  the  jugglers  came  various  literary  and  dramatic  associa- 
tions, some  of  them  stationary  in  Paris  or  some  large  city,  whilst  others 
travelled  through  the  provinces,  who  are  only  known  to  us  by  their  theatrical 
names,  such  as  the  Enfants  sans  Souci,  the  Bazochiens,  the  Enfants  de  la  Mere 
Sotte,  the  Mere  FoUe  de  Dijon,  &c.  It  has  been  said,  but  without  sufficient 
authority,  that  the  Chambers  of  Rhetoric,  which  also  represented  comic  pieces, 
existed  in  Belgium  and  Flanders  as  early  as  the  thirteenth  century.  "WTiat- 
ever  may  be  the  truth  as  to  this  assertion,  it  is  certain  that  Antwerp  possessed 
two  Chambers  of  Rhetoric,  and  Ghent  four ;  and  the  theatrical  taste  of  the 
Flemish  and  the  Belgians  was  carried  so  far  that  their  communal  companies 


ft 


Fig.  387. — Token  of  Pierre  lo  Dru,  Printer  of  Gringore's  Poetry  at  the  Sign  of  the  "  Mere  Sotte,' 
near  "the  End  of  Nostre-Dame  Bridge"  (Paris,  1505). 


of  archers  and  crossbow-men  sought  relaxation  from  their  military  exercises 
in  dramatic  entertainments,  and  eventually  became  regular  comedians. 

The  festivals  of  Christmas  and  Epiphany,  the  Carnival,  and  a  few  local 
solemnities  were  annually  celebrated  in  Paris  and  in  the  princiijal  French 
towns  by  burlesque  representations,  often  degenerating  into  scandal,  given  by 
the  Bazoche,  which  consisted  of  the  law  licentiates  and  all  the  young  men 
belonging  to  the  courts  of  justice.  The  Enfants  de  la  Mere  Sotte  and  the 
Enfants  sans  Souci  did  not  long  fonu  two  separate  and  distinct  troupes,  and 
several  of  the  best  poets  of  the  time— amongst  others,  Francois  Villon  and 
Clement  Marot  (Fig.  386)— were  actors  in  both  of  these  troui^es.     Another 


512  THE  DRAMA. 


excellent  poet,  Pierre  Griugore,  herald-at-arins  to  the  Duke  of  Lorraine,  was 
the  principal  author  and  the  manager  of  the  troupe  named  Enfants  sans  Souci, 
the  memhers  of  which,  recruited  amongst  the  wealthy  bourgeois  families,  had 
set  up  in  opposition  to  the  Brothers  of  the  Passion.  Grringore's  theatre, 
established  close  to  what  are  now  the  Paris  markets,  was  in  great  vogue 
during  the  reign  of  Louis  XII.,  and  his  representations  generally  took  place 
during  the  Carnival.  The  pieces  in  his  repertory,  though  interlarded  with 
sharp  hits  at  the  higher  clergy  and  the  court  of  Rome,  were  for  the  most  part 
somewhat  severe  upon  the  score  of  morality,  for  he  had  taken  as  his  motto, 
"Raison  partout,  lien  que  raison"  (Reason  everywhere,  nothing  but  reason). 

The  people  had  a  keen  liking  for  spectacles  of  every  kind  during  the 
Middle  Ages,  and  always  turned  out  in  crowds  to  witness  the  cavalcades, 
pomps,  and  processions  which  accompanied  the  tournaments,  plenary  courts, 
and  feudal  ceremonies.  In  a  history  of  the  theatre  it  is  necessary,  there- 
fore, to  mention  the  plays  in  dumb-show,  the  allegories,  and  the  pantomimes, 
which  were  principally  represented  upon  the  occasion  of  a  royal  visit,  or  of 
j)ublic  rejoicings  in  celebration  of  some  great  local  or  political  event.  (See,  in 
the  volume  on  "  Manners,  Customs,  and  Dress,"  chapter  on  Ceremonial.)  Then, 
again,  there  was  the  Dance  of  Death,  knoAvn  as  the  Danse  Macabre,  which  in 
the  fifteenth  century  was  one  of  the  spectacles  which  produced  the  greatest 
effect  upon  the  common  people  (Fig.  388).  It  is  almost  certain  that  at  first 
this  Danse  Macabre  was  a  sort  of  pantomime,  a  compound  of  music  and 
singing ;  and  in  1424,  the  English,  then  masters  of  Paris,  had  it  pubKcly 
performed  in  the  Cemetery  of  the  Innocents,  to  celebrate  their  victory  at 
Verneuil. 

Another  pantomime,  but  of  a  less  lugubrious  kind,  was  offered  to  the 
people  of  Paris  in  1313,  by  order  of  Philippe  le  Bel,  in  honour  of  the  recep- 
tion of  his  two  sons  into  the  Order  of  Chivalry.  Godefroy  de  Paris,  a 
rhyming  chronicler  of  the  time,  describes  it  as  follows : — 

"  Vit-ou  Dieu,  sa  Mere  rire  .  .  . 
Nostre  Seigneur  manger  des  pommes,  .  .  , 
Et  lea  Anges  au  paradis  .  .   . 
Et  lea  Ames  dedans  chanter  .   .  . 
Enfer  y  fut  noir  et  pnant, 
Diables  y  ot  plus  de  cent."  .  .  . 

In  1437,  when  Charles  VII.  entered  Paris,  a  representation  was  given  of 


THE  DRAMA. 


513 


the  Comhat  of  the  Seven  Capital  Siii.s  aijain^t  the  Thew  Thr.iloyiral  I'lrtiirs  a„<t 
the  Four  Caydinal  Virtues.  When  Charles  the  Bold  entered  a  town  in  the 
Netherlands  a  sort  of  tableau  ririint  called  the  Judgment  of  Paris  was  given 
m  his  honour.     In  the  famous  entertainments  at  Rouen  in  l.j50,  in  honour  of 


Fig.  388. — The  Actor  (Author),  conducted  by  Fresh-Memory,  is  shown  the  Burial-places  of  the 
Chevaliers,  Kings,  and  Emperors. — Miniature  from  the  "  Chevalier  delibere." — Manuscript  of 
the  Fifteenth  Century  (No.  173,  B.  L.). — In  the  Arsenal  Library. 


the  entry  of  King  Henry  II.,  there  were  represented  at  the  same  time  Faith 
and  Virtue,  Olymjius  and  the  Parliament  of  Nomrandy,  the  Muses,  and  all 
Kings  of  France  from  Pharamond's  time.     Thus  all  epochs  and  aU  kinds  of 

.3  u 


514  THE  DRAMA. 


belief  were  put  under  contribution  by  tbe  inventors  of  pantomimes,  so  as  to 
give  more  attraction  and  splendour  to  these  spectacles,  which  were  solely- 
intended  to  gratify  the  eye. 

Up  to  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  centurj%  the  farces,  soties,  and  moralites 
continued  to  attract  the  public,  and  the  scenic  tradition  of  the  Middle  Ages 
was  still  much  the  same  as  it  had  been  two  centuries  previously.  But  in  1541 
the  Paris  Parliament  forbade  the  actors  who  represented  the  Mystery  of  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles  to  open  their  theatre  upon  saints'  days  and  Sundays,  and 
even  upon  certain  week-days.  This  was  the  origin  of  a  hot  dispute,  in  which 
the  Provost  of  Paris  and  the  King  himself  intervened,  and  which  terminated, 
after  many  delays  and  difficulties,  by  a  definite  authorisation  granted  to  the 
actors,  who  took  up  their  quarters  at  the  Hotel  de  Bourgogne,  in  the  Pue 
Francoise.  The  ancient  privileges  of  the  Brothers  of  the  Passion  were 
confirmed  by  a  decree  of  the  Parliament  dated  November  19th,  1548,  upon 
the  express  condition  that  "for  the  future  they  shall  play  only  secular, 
lawful,  and  decent  subjects,  and  no  longer  introduce  into  their  plays  anything 
touching  the  mysteries  or  religion."  The  miracles,  the  mysteries,  and  the 
moralites  were  accordingly  eliminated  from  their  repertory.  The  Brothers 
of  the  Passion,  who  had  the  right  to  represent  grandcs  histoires  par  pcvsonnages 
(narratives  with  the  characters  in  them  personated),  such  as  the  Destruction  of 
Troy  the  Great,  by  Jacques  Millet  (Fig.  389),  abandoned  their  dramatic 
undertaking,  and  ceded  their  play-room  and  privileges  to  a  troupe  of  regular 
actors  who  gave  there  representations  of  tragedy  and  comed}^  The  Hotel  de 
Bourgogne,  over  the  princifial  entrance  to  which  was  still  retained  a  sculj)tured 
bas-relief  with  the  instruments  of  Christ's  Passion,  became  the  cradle  of  the 
Theatre  Francais. 

Thus  exiled  from  the  capital,  the  mysteries  took  refuge  in  the  provinces, 
where  they  held  possession  of  the  stage,  in  some  few  towns,  for  the  whole  of 
the  sixteenth  century,  competing  for  public  favour  with  the  buffoons  and 
mountebanks  who  attended  the  fairs  (Fig.  390).  The  farces  and  soties 
had  also  been  proscribed.  In  1516  the  Bazochiens  were  forbidden  by 
parliamentary  decree,  and  by  order  of  the  Provost  of  Paris,  to  make  any  allu- 
sion to  the  royal  family  in  the  pieces  which  they  represented.  In  1536  they 
were  forbidden  to  "  exhibit  spectacles  or  writings  taxing  or  noting  (blaming 
or  criticizing)  any  person  whatsoever."  Two  years  later  they  were  compelled 
to  submit  their  pieces  to  the  censorship  of  Parliament  before  putting  them 


THE  DRAMA. 


5!S 


m^oii  the  stage  ;  and,  as  the  satirical  boldness  of  those  pieces  continued  to 
increase,  the  clerks  of  the  Bazoche  who  did  not  conform  to  this  order  were 
threatened  with  the  gibbet.  Such  severities  were  necessarily  fatal  to  the 
soties,  and  at  about  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century  they  disappeared 
altogether. 

These  restrictions  upon  the  liberty  of  the  stage — the  establishment  of 
dramatic  censure,  and  the  prohibition  of  pieces  rej)resenting  sacred  subjects — 
accelerated  the  disajjpearanco  of  the  ancient  drama,  and  there  then  dawned  a 


Fig.  389.— The  Abduction  of  Helen.— Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engra\-ing  from  the  "  Istoire  de  1=1 
Destruction  de  Troye  la  Grant,  mise  par  Personnaiges,"  by  Master  Jacques  Millet  (Paria, 
Jehan  Driart,  1498,  in  folio,  Goth.}.— In  the  Library  of  M.  Firmiu-Didot,  Paris. 


new  period  in  dramatic  art  all  over  Europe.  By  the  side  of  the  mysteries, 
which  were  stiU  rej^resented  in  Spain  under  the  names  of  aido&  sacmiiimtale'i, 
appeared  the  brilliant  dramas  of  Calderon  and  Lope  de  Vega.  Shakspcare 
at  the  same  time  appeared  upon  the  English  stage,  and  in  Italy  Machiavelli  s 
Mandragora  revealed  a  modern  Aristophanes.  At  the  court  of  Leo  X. 
classic  tragedy  revived  in  Trissino's  Sophonisba.  In  France,  too,  where  there 
was  a  reawakening-  of  the   souvenirs  of  ancient  Greece  and  Rome,  Sibilet, 


Si6  _  THE  DRAMA. 


Guillaiune  Bouchet,  and  Lazare  de  Baif  translated  Sophocles  and  Euripides ; 
Octavian  de  St.  G-elais,  Bonaventure  des  Periers,  and  Charles  Estienne 
translated  Terence  into  prose  and  verse ;  and  Ronsard  had  scarcely  terminated 
his  university  studies  when  he  translated  into  verse  the  Phitus  of  Aristophanes, 
and  he  and  several  of  his  fellow-students  played  at  the  Boncourt  College, 
where  he  had  been  a  student.  This  is  a  favourable  opportunity  for  pointing 
out  that  with  this  new  kind  of  dramatic  pieces  there  appeared  a  new  class  of 
actors ;  for  the  university  students,  under  the  direction  of  their  teachers, 
played  in  the  improvised  theatres  of  their  colleges,  and  were  even  admitted 
occasionally  to  play  before  the  court.  The  same  thing  occurred  in  England, 
as  is  shown  by  a  passage  in  Samlet ;  and  there  were  university  theatres  in 
Germany,  upon  which  were  represented  the  Latin  comedies  of  E,euchlin  and 
Conrad  Celtes,  imitations  of  the  Farce  de  Pathelin  and  other  French  soties. 

Tradition  and  imitation  successively  held  the  upper  hand,  and  tragedy 
was  at  first,  and  for  a  considerable  time,  preferred  far  above  comedy.  The 
authors  of  the  first  classic  tragedies — Etienne,  Jodelle,  Jacques  de  la  TaiUe, 
Charles  Toustain,  and  Jacques  Grevin — minutely  observed  the  traditions  of  the 
Greek  drama,  conforming  themselves  to  the  rules  as  to  unity  of  time  and 
place,  interspersing  the  dialogues  with  lyric  choruses,  and  resisting,  so  to 
speak,  every  kind  of  innovation,  as  from  Bobert  Garnier  (Fig.  391),  who 
produced  the  first  piece  in  1573,  down  to  Rotrou,  who  definitely  marked  the 
starting-point  of  modern  tragedy,  the  ideas  of  the  tragic  poets  are  framed 
after  the  same  pattern,  just  as  their  Alexandrines  are  cast  in  the  same 
mould.  For  two  centuries  the  French  were  all  for  tragedy,  though  the 
tragic  writers,  when  inventing  a  subject  of  their  own,  did  not  limit  them- 
selves to  Gi'eece  and  to  Borne.  Pierre  Mathieu's  Esther  and  Vashti,  and 
P.  Bardou's  St.  Jacques,  remind  one,  so  far  as  the  subject  is  concerned,  of  the 
mysteries ;  but  the  composition  and  form  of  these  pieces  did  not  outstep 
the  rules  of  rhetoric,  and  French  tragedy  not  unfrequently  introduced  upon 
the  stage,  within  the  limit  of  these  well-defined  rules,  French  subjects  and 
personages  even  while  living,  as,  for  instance,  Joan  of  Arc,  Coligny,  the 
Guises,  the  League,  &c. 

The  old  comic  plays,  which  were  cultivated  with  more  or  less  success  at  the 
Hotel  de  Bourgogne  by  Pierre  Leloj^er,  Remy  Belleau,  Honore  d'Urfe,  Pierre 
Larivey,  and  others,  developed  into  comedies,  tragi-comedies,  pastorals,  fables 
bocageres  (fables  of  the  gross),  and plaisants  den's  (waggish  sayings).     Some  of 


THE  DRAMA. 


5'7 


miMt 


«  i 


-2    'f- 
to  ■" 


Si8  THE  DRAMA. 


the  poets,  too,  who  had  succeeded  at  tragedies,  also  tried  their  hand  at  the 
less  serious  style.  First  of  all  they  imitated  Menander  and  Plautus,  and 
in  many  cases  produced  works  full  of  amusing  situations  and  witty  sayings, 
and  with  dialogues  in  verse  remarkable  for  their  ease,  not  less  than  for 
their  animation  and  brilliancy.  It  must  be  allowed  that  the  comedies  of  the 
sixteenth  century  are  not  less  broad  in  their  language  than  the  Greek  and 
Roman  comedies ;  but,  as  one  of  the  best  writers  of  the  time,  Pierre  de  Larivey 
of  Champagne,  remarks  in  one  of  his  prologues,  "  If  any  man  should  be 
of  opinion  that  there  is  an  occasional  departure  from  propriety,  I  beg  him  to 
remember  that,  in  order  to  express  correctly  the  fashions  and  tendencies 
of  the  present  day,  the  acts  and  the  words  must  be  of  corresponding  wanton- 
ness." The  authors  of  that  period  composed  their  comedies  after  the  models 
which  they  had  before  their  eyes,  and  in  representing  the  corrupt  morals  of 


Fig.  391. — Portrait  of  Eobert  Gamier. — Fac-simile  of  an  Engraving  by  Leonard  Gaultier,  from 
the  Series  called  "  Chronologie  coUee,"  in  the  Library  of  M.  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 

their  time  they  did  not  offend  either  the  eyes  or  the  ears  of  their  audience. 
Besides,  these  pieces  did  not  go  nearly  so  far  as  the  Italian  comedies,  such  as 
the  Abuses  of  the  Sienna  Academy,  translated  into  French,  and  Ariosto's 
Supposes,  also  translated  into  French,  and  represented  all  over  the  country. 
The  Italian  comedy  had  also  come  into  favour  since  the  performance  at  Lyons 
of  Bibiena's  Calandra,  which  was  represented  there  in  1548,  before  the  court, 
by  some  Italian  actors,  whom  Catherine  de'  Medicis  had  sent  for.  But  the 
first  Italian  troupe  which  settled  in  Paris  had  been  brought  from  Venice,  in 
1577,  by  order  of  King  Henry  III.,  who  allowed  them  to  give  their  repre- 
sentations in  the  Hotel  du  Petit-Bourbon.  This  troupe  became  sedentary, 
and  Italian  comedy,  the  repertory  of  which  surpassed  in  licentiousness  and 
extravagance  the  farces  of  the  old  French  drama,  remained  in  existence  in 
Paris,  almost  without  interruption,  to  the  close  of  the  seventeenth  century. 


CIVIL    AND    RELIGIOUS    ORATORY. 


The  Oratorical  Genius  of  the  Gaula.— The  Origin  of  the  French  Bar.— Christian  Oratory  in  tho 
FirBt  Centuries.  — Gallo-Roman  Oratory.  —  Preachers  and  Jliasionariea.  —  Orators  of  the 
Crusade.s.— St.  Bernard  and  St.  Dominic— Pleadings  at  the  Bar  under  Louis  XT.— Political 
Oratory  under  Charles  YI.— Popular  Preachers.— Orators  of  the  Reformation.— Orators  of  the 
League.— Parliamentary  Harangues.- Oratory  in  the  States-General.— Military  Oratory. 

TIE  veneration  in  which  all  the  great  men  of 
antiquity  have  held  the  gift  of  eloquence," 
saA-.s  M.  Louandre,  of  whose  treatise,  as  in 
the  previous  chapter,  weavail  our.selveswith 
reference  to  this  subject,  "the  historical 
prestige  attaching  to  the  names  of  pagan 
orators,  the  victories  gained  bj-  the  generals 
who  were  able  to  address  their  soldiers,  and 
the  influence  acquired  hj  the  demagogues 
who  knew  how  to  captivate  the  attention 
of  the  crowd,  show  that  in  the  ancient 
world  it  was  not  merely  literary  renowni, 
but  a  share  in  the  direction  of  state  aifairs  which  residted  from  the  art  dr  hien 
dire"  (the  art  of  speaking).  But,  at  the  close  of  the  first  century  of  the 
Christian  era,  this  marvellous  art,  which  had  reached  so  high  a  pitch  of 
perfection  in  the  flourishing  periods  of  Athens  and  Eome,  fell  into  complete 
decadence,  and  the  three  following  centuries  possessed  nothing  but  tui-gid  and 
in,sipid  spouters.  Rhetoric  took  the  place  of  inspiration,  and  if  oratory  was 
still  professed  in  the  Greek  and  Roman  schools,  the  pedantic  mode  of  teaching 
produced  only  I'hetoricians.  Thus  all  that  remains  of  that  period  is  panegyrics 
and  congratulatory  harangues;  for  the  sole  aim  of  these  rhetoricians  was  to 
flatter  the  emperors  and  the  great,  obtain  favour,  and  guard  them.selves 
against  disgrace.      Amongst  them  may  be  mentioned  Claudius  Mamertinus 


Szo  CIVIL   AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 

Major  and  Mamertinus  Minor,  Nazarius,  Drepanius,  and  several  Gaids  from 
Aquitaine. 

Eloquence  had  from  the  earliest  period  been  held  in  great  honour  amongst 
the  Grauls.  The  ancient  Grauls  paid  worship  to  Hercules,  of  whom  they  had 
made  the  god  of  speech,  and  whom  they  represented  in  allegory  as  attacking 
men  with  golden  chains  issuing  from  his  mouth.  Thus  the  art  of  oratory  was 
in  their  esteem  the  highest  of  all,  and  they  were  very  fond  of  hearing  good 
speeches.  This  will  explain  why  the  Emperor  Claudius  instituted  at  Lyons 
oratorical  jousts,  the  defeated  in  which  were  compelled  to  eiface  with  the 
tongue  their  unsuccessful  speeches,  under  penalty  of  being  cast  into  the 
Rhone.  Juvenal  and  St.  Jerome  (Fig.  392)  are  agreed  in  recognising  the 
natural  talent  of  the  Gallic  race  for  speaking.  In  the  principal  towns  of 
Gaul — at  Toulouse,  Bordeaux,  Marseilles,  Treves,  Besancon,  and  Autun — there 
existed  public  schools  of  oratory,  which  produced  thousands  of  orators,  or 
rather  of  rhetoricians,  but  which  left  no  permanent  record  of  civil  or  purely 
literary  eloquence.  The  reason  was  that  a  new  stamp  of  eloquence,  such  as 
paganism  had  never  been  able  to  inspire,  was  suddenly  called  into  being  with 
the  Christian  religion.  The  pagan  rhetoricians  were  awed  into  silence,  like 
the  oracles  of  the  false  gods,  at  its  first  accents,  and  the  pulpit  of  sacred 
oratory  henceforward  stood  alone  in  the  midst  of  the  ancient  Forum. 

For  centuries  the  art  of  oratory  had  no  annals  in  political  life,  and 
speaking,  which  held  such  a  large  place  in  the  records  of  ancient  history, 
does  not  occupy  more  than  a  few  pages  in  the  histories  of  the  early  ages  of 
the  French  monarchy.  Gregory  of  Tours,  in  his  "  History  of  the  Francs," 
makes  it  sufficiently  clear  that  the  warriors  of  these  barbarian  times  set  more 
store  by  deeds  than  by  words.  King  Clovis,  when  urging  his  warriors  to 
undertake  fresh  conquests,  merely  said  to  them,  "  It  pains  me  to  see  the 
Arians  in  possession  of  a  part  of  Gaul.  Let  us  march  against  them,  with  the 
aid  of  God,  and  after  we  have  vanquished  them  let  us  reduce  the  country  into 
our  power."  And  the  Franks  forthwith  prepared  to  undertake  the  campaign. 
Mummolus,  Count  of  Auxerre,  and  patrician  of  the  troops  of  King  Gontran, 
said  to  the  Saxons,  who,  after  having  devastated  all  the  land  which  they  had 
overrun,  were  about  to  cross  the  Ehone  to  invade  the  kingdom  of  Sigebert, 
"  You  have  depopulated  the  land  of  the  King  my  master,  carried  ofE  the  crops 
and  the  cattle,  delivered  the  houses  to  the  flames,  cut  do-^vn  the  olive-trees, 
and  rooted  up  the  vines.     You  shall  not  set  foot  upon  the  other  side  of  the 


CIVIL  AXD  RELIGIOUS  ORATORV. 


5^' 


stream  luitil  you  luivc  made  compoiisatiou  to  those  whom  you  luive  reducod  tij 
misery.  If  you  refuse,  the  weight  of  my  sword  shall  be  felt  by  you,  by  ydur 
wive3,  and  by  your  children,  to  avenge  the  wrong  done  to  the  King  my 
m.aster."  This  proud  utterance  is  full  of  simplicity,  but  it  no  way  resembles 
the  allocutions  addressed  by  the  generals  of  Greece  and  of  Rome  to  their 
soldiers — allocutions  of  real  eloquence,  in  which  was  united  to  beauty  of 
diction  the  power  of  moving  and  carrying  away  popular  feeling. 

In  certain  circumstances,  however,  the  Gauls  must  have  emplo}'ed   the 


fig.  392.— St.  Jerome  and  two  Cardinals.— Miniature  from  the  "Petit  Traite  de  la  Vanile  d.-s 
Choses  Mondaines."— Manuscript  of  the  Fifteenth  Centuiy  (No.  30,  Sc.  and  A.)  —In  the 
Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


gift  of  speaking  with  success,  but  we  possess  no  written  record  of  their  end 
oratory.  This  oratory  they  undoubtedly  employed  In  judicial  i)leadings,  even 
at  the  time  when  the  Germans  and  the  Franks  were  established  in  Gaid.  The 
Franks,  who  did  not  hesitate  to  assume  the  language,  and  even  to  Imitate  the 
customs,  of  the  peoples  whom  they  had  subjected,  found  the  Gallo-Roman  bar 
in  regular  practice  In  the  sixth  century,  and  far  from  fettering  an  Institution 
which,  as  has  been  Ingeniously  suggtsted  by  a  modern  historian,  appeared  to 


522  CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 

them  like  a  mimic  battle-field,  they  were  the  first  to  declare  that  the  profes- 
sion of  barrister  was  a  noble  one,  and  they  soon  sought  to  obtain  admission  to 
it,  by  asking-  to  be  given  the  title  of  advocate,  or  avoue,  to  the  churches  and 
monasteries — oifices  which  compelled  them  not  only  to  defend  by  force 
ecclesiastical  territory  and  privileges,  but  also  to  protect  them,  when  necessary, 
by  word  of  month,  at  the  pleas  wherein  were  publicly  debated  questions  at 
issue,  in  presence  of  the  leudes,  or  of  the  richest  and  most  influential  freemen 
of  the  district.  This  is  all  we  know  on  the  subject,  and  even  when  we  come 
down  to  Charlemagne's  reign  there  is  nothing  extant  except  a  few  capitularies 
which  regulate  the  administration  of  justice,  but  which  make  no  allusion  to 
the  speeches  of  the  barristers.  In  fact,  the  doings  of  the  French  bar  (to  use 
a  modern  term)  are  involved  in  complete  obscurity  until  the  reign  of  St.  Louis, 
though  we  are  told  that  the  advocates  of  the  Church  were  enjoined  to  be 
conversant  with  the  law,  to  be  gentle  and  peaceable,  to  fear  God,  and  to  love 
their  country. 

This  decadence  was  the  natural  consequence  of  the  promulgation  of  the 
barbarian  laws  which  took  the  place  of  the  Roman  Code.  The  accused  had  no 
need  of  an  advocate  when,  in.  order  to  prove  their  innocence,  they  had  to 
submit  to  the  ordeal  of  fire,  red-hot  iron,  or  boiling  oil.  Speech  was  of  no 
use  in  quarrels  and  disputes  which  were  decided  by  duel.  The  best  advocate 
was  the  man  who  could  wield  the  sword  with  the  greatest  skill,  and  it  was  not 
until  after  the  abolition  of  the  duel  and  of  the  ordeals  by  fire  that  the  bar 
resumed  its  normal  existence.  We  must,  therefore,  look  back  through  many 
centuries  of  barbarism,  in  order  to  behold  the  triumph  of  Christian  eloquence 
in  Europe  (Fig.  393). 

It  would  be  interesting  to  read  the  speeches  and  sermons  of  the  first 
apostles  of  Christianity  in  the  West,  but  they  were  not  preserved  until  the 
end  of  the  fourth  centiiry,  when  the  edicts  of  Constantino  enabled  the 
Christian  Church  to  raise  its  voice  against  the  then  expiring  paganism.  It  is 
in  this  fourth  century  that  is  to  be  found  the  cradle  of  Christian  eloquence, 
delivered  in  Greek  by  St.  Athanasius,  St.  Gregory  Nazianzen,  St.  Gregory  of 
Nyssa,  St.  Epiphanius,  St.  Dionysius,  St.  John  Chrj^sostom ;  in  Syriac  by  St. 
Ephrem ;  and  in  Latin  by  St.  Ambrose,  St.  Augustine,  and  St.  Jerome.  "  The 
sublime  proportions  of  Christian  oratory,"  says  Villemain,  "  seem  to  increase 
as  the  other  kinds  fade  away."  And  after  citing  the  orators  named  above, 
he  adds,  "  Their  genius  alone  remains  erect  amidst  the  decay  of  the  empire. 


CIVIL   AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATOR V. 


523 


They  look  like  founders  surrounded  by  ruins."  Nothing  could  damp  the 
zeal  of  these  apostolic  spirits,  and  Chrysostom  has  revealed  to  us  the 
secret  of   their   undaunted   consistencj'  and  courage  when   he   exclaims,  in 


l«Trv()»x*» 


irfltJIVM'PHILQSOPHIS 


Fig.  393.— Allegorical  Composition,  representing  the  different  Degrees  of  University  Teaching.— 
Fac-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving  of  the  "Margarita  Philosophica "  (Bale  Edition,  in  4to, 
1508). 

presence  of  the  great  whose  vices  he  condemned,  and  of  the  prmces  whose 
power  he  braved,  "All  earthly  terrors  are  contemptible  in  my  sight.  I 
disdain  all  worldly  goods,  and  do  not  fear  poverty ;  I  do  not  desire  riches. 


524  CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 

and  I  do  not  dread  death ;  I  only  wisli  to  live  in  order  to  save  your 
souls." 

From  its  birtli  the  Gallic  Church  was  associated  in  this  great  work  of 
oratorical  proselytisni.  In  the  fourth  century  the  preachers  were  already 
numerous,  and  their  inspired  word  had  an  immense  influence  upon  the  faith- 
ful (Fig.  394).  We  can  estimate  the  authority  which  the  Catholic  pulpit 
must  have  possessed  when  we  read  the  Greek  sermons  ascribed  to  Eusebius, 
of  Emesa  in  Syria — sermons  which  are  now  said  to  have  been  delivered  in 
Gaul.  His  oratory  is  of  a  very  simple  kind,  and  yet  these  primitive 
preachers,  whose  very  names  are  unknown,  had  vividly  in  their  minds  the 
recollections  of  pagan  literature  when  they  related  the  spiritual  combats  of  a 
saint,  or  the  blood-stained  stniggles  of  a  martyr.  In  one  of  these  sermons 
upon  the  resurrection  of  Christ,  God  made  man  is  compared  to  Antaeus,  son 
of  the  Earth,  and  like  that  giant,  whom  mythology  represents  as  struggling 
with  Hercules,  the  Saviour  is  represented  as  only  touching  the  gromid,  the 
better  to  triumph  over  Sin,  the  father  of  Death.  In  another  sermon  the 
preacher  depicts  Tartarus  as  in  a  state  of  consternation,  and  the  black 
wardens  of  the  obscure  prisons  as  struck  with  dismay  at  the  arrival  of  the 
Son  of  God,  "  who  comes  there  to  command,  and  not  to  suffer." 

These  ancient  sermons  form,  together  with  the  legends  of  the  saints,  the 
most  important  part  of  the  literature  of  the  barbarous  ages.  From  the  fourth 
to  the  seventh  century,  in  Roman  Gaul,  the  Church  had  no  lack  of  brilliant 
orators  (Fig.  395).  In  the  first  rank  stood  St.  Hilary  of  Poitiers,  whom 
St.  Jerome  surnamed  the  "  Rhone  of  eloquence,"  so  rapid  and  majestic  was 
his  speech,  and  St.  Martin  of  Tours,  who  was  the  most  perfect  model  of 
Christian  charity ;  he  who  said  to  his  congregation,  which  consisted  of  herds- 
men and  shej)herds,  "  See  this  sheep  which  has  come  back  from  the  shearing. 
She  has  fulfilled  the  commands  of  the  gospel ;  she  has  given  part  of  her 
garments  to  clothe  the  naked.  Go  ye  and  do  likewise."  And  he  set  them 
an  example  by  dividing  his  cloak,  and  giving  half  to  a  poor  man  who  was 
shivering  with  cold.  In  the  fifth  century  appeared  St.  Eucher,  whose  learn- 
ing was  as  great  as  his  eloquence  ;  St.  Paulinus,  who  has  left  us  a  magnificent 
sermon  upon  almsgiving ;  St.  Hilary,  St.  Mamertus,  and  St.  Valerian,,  whose 
speeches  are  filled  with  the  purest  sentiments  of  Christianitjr,  ardent  love 
for  his  neighbour,  and  boundless  charity.  In  the  sixth  century  we  have 
the  famous  St.  Cajsarius  of  Aries,  who,  while  preaching  the  j)urest  and  most 


Fig.  394.— PreachinK  of  an  Apost'e  of  Chriafianity.— After  a  Picture  painted  upon  Wood,  attributed 
to  Fra  Angelico.— In  the  late  Collection  of  M.  Quedeville,  Paris. 


526  CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 

consolatory  doctrines  of  morality,  inveighed  witli  telling  force  of  language 
against  tlie  lieath.en  superstitions  whicli  were  again  raising  th,eir  heads,  and 
the  heresies  which  were  assailing  the  dogmas  of  the  Christian  faith.  His 
utterances,  full  of  unction  and  gentleness,  are  remarkable,  even  in  his  severest 
strictures  upon  the  adversaries  of  the  Church,  for  their  kindness  of  tone, 
which  was  very  well  calculated  to  win  souls  to  the  Divine  cause.  He  speaks 
of  the  most  daring  heretics  as  "  stars  fallen  from  the  sky,  which  God  may 
perchance  recall  to  the  firmament,  and  to  which  He  may  restore  the  primitive 
brightness  of  their  twinkle." 

In  the  same  century,  St.  Germain,  Bishop  of  Auxerre  ;  St.  Remi,  Bishop 
of  Rheims ;  and  St.  Avit,  Bishop  of  Vienne,  occupy,  with  St.  Csesarius,  a 
prominent  place  in  the  history  of  religious  oratory.  Sidonius  ApoUinaris 
says  of  St.  Remi  that  he  equalled,  and  even  surpassed,  every  orator  of  his  day. 
In  the  course  of  his  ej)iscopal  career,  which  extended  over  seventy-two  years, 
he  had  many  opportunities  of  demonstrating  the  influence  of  his  speech ; 
amongst  others,  when  preaching  upon  the  Passion  before  King  Clovis  and  the 
Franks,  who  had  not  yet  been  baptized  into  the  Church,  he  depicted  the 
sufEerings  of  our  Lord  with  such  pathetic  force  that  Clovis,  laying  his  hand  to 
his  sword,  exclaimed,  "  Had  but  my  Franks  and  I  been  there  !  " 

Preaching,  in  the  early  ages  of  the  Church,  was  the  special  attribute 
of  the  blshojDS.  In  some  cases  they  would  travel  about  the  country,  like  the 
modern  missionaries  ;  in  others  they  remained  stationary  in  their  episcopal 
sees.  Most  of  them  preached  two  or  three  times  a  day.  The  sermon  was 
delivered  from  the  steps  of  the  altar,  except  when  it  was  preached  in  the 
graveyard,  or  from  the  church  porch.  Sometimes  an  animated  conversation 
would  take  place  between  the  preacher  and  his  audience,  and  it  would  even 
happen  that  the  new  converts,  whose  savage  passions  could  ill  brook  the 
severe  injunctions  of  Christian  morality,  interrupted  the  sermon  by  their 
murmurs,  and  abruptly  left  the  church.  Upon  one  such  occasion  St.  Hilary 
of  Poitiers,  seeing  that  his  congregation  prepared  to  withdraw  in  order  not 
to  hear  his  chiding  voice,  ordered  the  doors  of  the  church  to  be  shut,  and 
said,  in  indignant  tones,  "You  refuse  to  hear  the  Divine  word  now.  But 
when  you  are  in  hell,  do  you  suppose,  miserable  sinners,  that  3^ou  will  be 
able  to  leave  when  you  feel  so  disposed?"  These  words  restored  silence  and 
order  in  the  congregation.  The  religious  eloquence,  which  had  such  a  great 
hold  over  rebellious  and  depraved  natures,  owed  scarcely  anything  to  art,  and 


THE   PREACHING  OF  S'   STEPHEN. 
Fresco  painung,  by  Fra  Angelico,  in  the  chapel  ol  Nicholas  V,  at  the  Vatican;  xV"  centurv. 


Fig.  395. — Pope  Gregory  I.,  .surnamed  Gregory  the  Great  (.540—604),  one  of  the  most  eloquent 
Christian  Orators  of  the  Sixth  Century,  sending  Missionaries  to  convert  England  to  Chris- 
tianity.'— Miniature  from  Manuscript  of  the  Tenth  Century,  in  the  Cotton  Library  (Claudius, 
A  III.). — It  is  attributed  to  St.  Dunstan,  who  occupied  the  Primatial  Chair  of  Canterbury, 
founded  by  St.  Gregory  the  Great. 


528  CIVIL  AXD  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 

eTerytMng  to  tlie  Divine  inspirations  of  faith,  to  tlie  noble  impulses  of  the 
liumaa  conscience,  and,  aboTe  all,  to  the  ardour  of  Christian  feelina-. 

The  inTasions,  which  were  contiaually  letting  loose  a  fresh  torrent  of 
barbarians  into  Gaul,  the  intestine  struggles  of  conquerors  and  invaders, 
and  the  laborious  transfonnation  of  pagan  society  had  in  nowise  checked 
the  impulse  of  Christian  proselytism.  It  was  then  that  Ireland,  which  had 
not  long  since  received  the  Gospel  revelation  conveyed  to  that  country  by 
St.  Patrick,  in  her  turn  suppKed  a  noble  band  of  missionaries  who  preached 
the  Christian  religion.  Amongst  them  shone  in  the  first  rank  (540 — 615), 
St.  Columba,  the  founder  of  the  Monastery  of  Luxeuil,  whose  utterances, 
bearing  the  impress  of  the  most  burning  zeal,  were  marked  by  a  vehemence 
of  ideas  which  anticipated,  so  to  speak,  his  words.  In  one  of  his  sermons 
he  exclaims,  "  Oh,  fragile  life !  Thou  art  the  way,  and  not  the  L'fe.  Thou 
startest  from  sin  to  arrive  at  death.  An  arid  road,  long  for  some,  short  for 
others;  sometimes  di-eary,  and  sometimes  pleasant,  but  alike  rapid  for  all; 
many  follow  thee,  without  asking  whither  thou  leadest.  Human  life  is  a 
tiling  to  di'ead,  and  it  is  beset  by  dangers  ;  it  passes  like  a  bii-d,  like  a  shadow, 
like  an  image,  like  nothing."  One  might  imagine  that  Dante  had  this  passage 
in  his  mind  when  he  began  to  write  his  "Divine  Comedy."  These  Irish 
missionaries  made,  especially  in  J^forthern  Gaul,  numerous  disciples,  who  also 
devoted  themselves  to  preaching  the  Gospel.  They  were  to  be  met  with 
everywhere,  in  the  towns  and  the  country  districts,  travelling  from  place  to 
place  on  donkeys,  preaching  as  they  went,  and  stopping  at  the  houses  on  the 
road.  The  people  humbly  saluted  them  as  they  passed,  the  rich  and  the 
great  esteemed  it  an  honour  to  accord  them  hospitality,  and  even  kings  were 
proud  to  give  a  seat  at  table  to  these  holy  men,  who,  as  a  hagiographer  has 
said,  "placed  beside  the  master  of  the  house,  and  amidst  the  pleasures  of  the 
festive  board,  served  also  to  the  guests  the  wholesome  food  of  the  Di\-ine 
word." 

Germany,  like  Gaul,  was  visited  by  these  CathoHc  missionaries  from 
Ireland.  The  most  celebrated  of  them  was  St.  Boniface  (675 — 755),  whom 
Michelet  described  as  "  a  hero  who  crossed  the  Ehiue,  the  Alps,  and  the  sea 
so  often  that  he  was,  as  it  were,  the  connecting  link  between  nations.  It  was 
through  him  that  the  Franks  came  to  an  understanding  with  Eome  and  the 
other  Germanic  tribes.  He  it  was  who  attached  these  nomad  tribes  to  the  soil 
by  means  of  religion  and  civilisation,  and  unwittingly  prepared  the  way  tor 


CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATOR}'. 


529 


the   armies  of  Charlemague,   as   the  missiouai-ios   of    the    sixteenth    century 
oijened  America  to  the  armies  of  Spain." 

Preaching  was  not  the  sole  arena  in  which  religious  oratory  had  to  do 
battle.  The  Councils,  which  were,  so  to  speak,  the  guardians  of  the  sacred 
deposit  of  orthodox  faith,  and  to  which  the  Middle  Ages  owe,  even  in  the 


Fig.  390. — rrcacbiiig  of  thu  first  Mis.siouary  AposUes.— After  a  Tapestry  in  Tournay  Cathedial, 

made  at  Ai'ras  in  1402. 


civil  order,  the  wisest  of  their  law.s — these  Councils,  which  have  been  so  happily 
termed  the  Champs  de  Mai  of  the  Church,  offered  to  ecclesiastical  speakers  a 
vast  field  for  the  display  of  what  ability  they  might  possess.  Whatever 
subject  was  laid  before  these  illustrious  assemblies  was  carefully  studied,  and 

'6   Y 


530  CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 

often  gave  rise  to  eloquent  debates.  Unfortunately  nothing  is  extant  of  these 
discussions  except  the  text  of  the  decrees  which  they  had  prepared.  It  seems 
that  spoken  utterances  were  less  easily  preserved  in  these  periods  of  social 
renovation,  for  we  possess  but  few  records  of  religious  oratory  dating  from 
Charlemagne's  reign,  though  we  know  that  such  celebrated  preachers  as 
Alcuin,  St.  Anscaire,  St.  Agobard,  Eadbert,  Hincmar,  Raban  Maurus,  &c., 
must  have  delivered  many  sermons  worth  recording.  But  scholasticism  was 
already  in  course  of  formation,  and  the  spontaneous  outbursts  of  the  heart 
were  kept  under  bj'  the  subtleties  of  the  mind.  The  priest  was  lost  in  the 
rhetorician,  and  it  needed  the  imperious  force  of  circumstances  to  revive 
the  ardour  and  enthusiasm  of  early  times ;  as,  for  instance,  at  the  period  of 
the  Norman  invasions,  when  the  bishops  preached  a  holy  war  against  the 
Northern  forces  with  a  patriotic  eloquence  which  has  not  been  forgotten. 

This  irresistible  power  of  speech  was  all  the  more  strange  because,  during 
the  tenth  century,  which  was  justly  called  the  "iron  age  of  the  Church," 
more  than  one  clerk  frankly  admitted,  when  a  holy  book  was  shown  to  him, 
that  he  did  not  know  how  to  read  {nescio  literas).  The  year  1000,  which 
was  expected  to  bring  with  it  the  day  of  judgment,  was  drawing  near, 
and  all  piublic  and  private  contracts  were  dated  from  "  the  time  near  to  the 
end  of  the  world."  The  Christian  preachers  mourned,  amidst  the  lamentations 
and  sobs  of  the  people,  the  coming  death  of  the  human  race.  In  all  the 
churches  homilies  were  pronounced  upon  the  Antichrist  and  the  resurrection 
of  the  dead.  When  the  dreaded  epoch  had  passed  by,  religious  fervour  was 
again  displayed,  and  out  of  gratitude  to  God  new  churches  were  built,  in 
which  the  preachers  announced  the  holy  enterprise  of  the  Crusades. 

It  may  be  said  that  the  Crusades  created  a  new  kind  of  religious  eloquence, 
which  filled  the  whole  world  during  the  eleventh,  twelfth,  and  thirteenth 
centuries.  This  eloquence  was  represented  by  two  diiferent  kinds  of  orators, 
both  working  to  the  same  end,  but  by  different  means.  There  were  the  true 
apostles,  fidl  of  faith  and  enthusiasm,  who  travelled  all  over  Europe  preaching 
the  holy  war  against  the  infidels  and  the  oppressors  of  Christianity  in  the 
East ;  and  there  were  the  priests,  and  more  especially  the  monks,  who 
proclaimed,  in  the  churches  and  in  the  cloisters,  that  the  time  had  come  for 
the  clergy  and  the  religious  orders  to  abandon  a  life  of  contemplation,  in 
order  to  form  the  great  army  of  Christ,  and  go  to  Palestine  to  deliver  his 
tomb  by  dispossessing  the  Saracens  of  Jerusalem.     Religious  eloquence  never 


CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORl'.  53, 


wielded  a  wider  influence  than  then.    The  whole  West  answered  to  tlie  appeal 
with  one  voice,  "  Dicu  le  volt !  " 

The  two  great  orators  of  the  first  Crusade  were  Peter  (lie  Hermit  and  Pope 
Urban  II.  The  fonner  was  the  people's  orator,  for  he  traversed  the  land 
upon  his  mule,  cross  in  hand,  preaching,  weeping,  and  beating  his  breast. 
It  was  Pope  Urban  II.  who,  at  the  Council  of  Clermont,  brought  to  a  climax 
the  resolution  in  favour  of  the  Crusade  by  the  warmth  of  his  utterances.  As 
contemporary  Chronicles  have  it,  "  Those  who  heard  him  preach  believed 
that  they  heard  the  heavenly  triunpet."  His  speech  was  answered  with  the 
unanimous  shout,  "  Dieu  le  veut !  "  Thus  thousands  of  pilgrims  started  for 
the  East  with  no  other  hope  or  thought  save  of  obtaining  remission  for  their 
sins  and  an  eternal  recompense.  It  was  Christian  eloquence,  too,  which, 
during  the  hardshijDs  of  this  distant  expedition,  sustained  the  courage  of 
Godfrey  de  Bouillon  and  his  companions.  (See,  ia  volimie  on  "  Military  and 
Religious  Life,"  the  chapter  on  Crusades.) 

The  second  Crusade  was  resolved  upon  in  1146  at  the  assembly  of  Yezelay, 
which  St.  Bernard,  Abbot  of  Clairvaux,  had  convoked  by  order  of  Louis  VII. 
Suger,  the  King's  minister,  had  endeavoured  to  get  the  new  Crusade  adjourned 
in  the  interests  of  the  State,  but  St.  Bernard  protested,  in  the  name  of  the 
Church  and  of  the  national  honour,  that  it  was  necessary  to  avenge  the  recent 
disasters  of  Christians.  The  eloquence  of  the  Abbot  of  Clairvaux  j^revailed 
over  that  of  St.  Denis,  and  Suger  was  compelled  to  abandon  his  opposition  to 
the  popular  movement.  St.  Bernard,  inflamed  by  a  holy  zeal,  at  once  set  out 
to  raise  armies  by  the  mere  power  of  his  word.  Wherever  he  went  the 
churches  and  the  public  places  of  assembly  were  not  large  enough  to  contain 
the  excited  crowds  i^-hich  pressed  around  him,  and  he  then  jireached  from 
rude  platforms  erected  for  the  purpose  in  the  middle  of  the  fields.  "When  he 
was  addressing  the  clerks  and  doctors  he  spoke  in  Latin,  only  employing  the 
vulgar  or  Romanic  tongue  to  address  the  people  ;  and  so  great  was  the  respect 
felt  for  him  that  when  he  preached  at  Mayence,  Cologne,  and  Spires,  his 
hearers,  though  they  could  not  understand  a  word  of  what  he  said,  were 
inflamed  by  the  enthusiasm  of  his  gestures,  and  flew  to  arms  as  eagerly  as 
the  French  crusaders. 

The  same  enthusiasm  was  reproduced  a  century  later,  when  Foulques 
de  Neuilly  was  authorised  by  Pope  Innocent  III.  to  preach  the  Crusade  of 
1108.     "When  Foulques  opened  his  mouth  to  preach,"  relates  the  chronicler 


532 


CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 


Jacques  de  Vitry,  who  was  himself  an  eminent  preacher,  "  it  was  God  who 
conferred  upon  him  his  persuasive  accents.  Those  who  had  heard  him 
struggled  to  get  a  piece  from  his  garments,  and  he  was  compelled  to  have  a 
new  frock  every  dajr.  He  was  obliged  to  provide  himself  with  a  stout  stick, 
-nath  which  he  kept  off  the  crowd  which  would  otherwise  have  suffocated 
him.  The)'  did  not  murmur  at  the  wounds  inflicted  by  the  blows  which  he 
dealt  them,  and,  in  the  ardour  of  their  faith,  they  licked  their  own  blood,  as  if 


Fig.  397.— Portrait  of  Pope  Honorius  III.  (1216—1227),  who  exhorted  Louis  VIII.  to  undertake 
the  Crusade  against  the  Albigenaes,  and  instituted  in  1216  the  Order  of  Dominican  Friars. — 
Fresco  Painting  upon  Gold  Ground  in  Mosaic,  in  the  ancient  Basilica  of  St.  Paul-v?ithout-the- 
Walls,  Kome. 


it  had  been  sanctified  because  made  to  flow  by  this  man  of  God."  Foidques 
had  all  the  outspoken  boldness  of  the  popular  preachers  of  the  end  of  the 
fifteenth  centur)',  sparing  no  man  in  his  criticisms  and  anathemas.  One  day, 
when  preaching  before  Richard,  King  of  England,  he  exclaimed,  "  I  advise 
j^ou,  in  the  name  of  God,  to  marry  as  quicklj'  as  possible  your  three  daughters, 
lest  some  evil  befall  j'ou."     "  You  are  mistaken,"  rejoined  the  King  ;  "  I  have 


CIVIL   AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY 


533 


no  daughters."  "  I  tell  you  that  you  have  three,"  said  the  preacher  ;  "  they 
are  Pride,  Avarice,  and  Luxury."  "Whereupon,  the  King,  addressing  himself 
to  the  barons,  said,  "  I  give  Pride  to  the  Templars,  Avarioe  to  the  Cistercian 
monks,  and  Luxurj'  to  mj'  grand  feudatories."  AVe  need  merely  mention, 
after  Foulques  de  Neuilly,  of  other  doctors  who  preached  the  Crusade  with 
no  less  success,  Geoffroy  of  Bordeaux,  Ilildebert  of  Le  Mans,  Jean  de 
Bellesrae,  Amedee  of  Lausanne,  Eudes  of  Chateauroux,  Gcboin  of  Troyes, 
Jean  de  Nivelle,  and  Piobert  of  Arbrisscl. 


Fi-.  398.— Portrait  of  Gregory  IX.  (1227— I'iil),  Hie  elocjuent  Defender  of  the  Rights  and 
Privileges  of  the  Holy  Sec.— Fresco  Painting  upon  Gold  Ground  in  Mosaic,  in  the  ancient 
Basilica  of  St.  Paul-without-the-Walls,  Rome. 


Sacred  oratory,  which  in  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries  did  wonders 
in  the  way  of  raising  armies,  almost  instantaneously,  for  the  Crusade,  had  to 
combat  in  those  days  the  profane  oratory  of  the  heretics.  These  heretics 
seemed  to  derive  encouragement  from  the  brilliant  triimiphs  of  the  orators  of 
the  Church.  All  rebellions  and  religious  insurrections  had  their  beginning 
in  mischievous  addresses,  which  had  but  too  great  influence  upon  weak  and 


534  CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 

fanatical  minds.  Thus  Pierre  de  Bruys  ventured  to  deny  the  Real  Presence, 
and  condemned  the  custom  of  praying  for  the  dead  ;  and  Eon  issued  from  the 
heart  of  Armorica,  declaring  that  he  had  come  to  judge  the  quick  and  the 
dead.  In  other  places  we  had  the  puhlicains  of  Flanders  and  Burgundy,  who 
endeavoured  to  revive  the  monstrous  doctrines  of  Manicheism,  the  Valdenses, 
and  the  Albigenses,  dissenters  half  religious,  half  political,  who,  after  having 
preached  humilitj''  and  renunciation  of  worldly  goods,  foiuid  more  response 
among  the  lower  classes  by  preaching  the  cessation  of  manual  labour,  the 
overthrow  of  ecclesiastical  authority,  and  the  community  of  goods.  As  each 
schismatic  orator  arose,  he  was  at  once  opposed  by  an  orthodox  orator,  who 
becam.e  the  eloquent  champion  of  the  Church  (Figs.  399  and  400).  St.  Bernard 
fought  in  the  first  rank,  taking  for  his  motto  the  maxim  of  Christian  charity, 
"Let  us  persuade,  but  not  constrain."  He  was  supported  by  Pierre  de 
Castelnau  ;  Cardinal  d'Albano  ;  Jacques  de  Vitry  ;  Arnauld,  Abbot  of  Clair- 
vaux ;  and  William,  Archdeacon  of  Paris.  But  the  most  eloquent  of  the 
Catholic  orators  was  the  SjDaniard  St.  Dominic,  founder  of  the  order  of 
Dominican  Friars  (Fig.  399).  Dominic,  who  preached  for  ten  years  in  the 
southern  provinces  of  France,  and  who  never  showed  any  mercy  to  heresy, 
was  one  of  the  most  heroic  soldiers  of  the  Church  militant.  His  irresistible 
eloquence  produced  such  a  prodigious  effect  upon  his  contemporaries  that 
the  people  believed  that  he  was  the  direct  exponent  of  the  heavenly  wUl. 
According  to  some,  flames  issued  from  his  mouth  when  he  spoke ;  according 
to  others,  the  church  bells  rang  of  themselves  when  he  was  about  to  preach ; 
and  it  was  also  aiErmed  that  during  one  of  his  sermons  a  statue  of  the  Virgin 
had  been  seen  to  lift  out  its  arm,  as  if  to  threaten  the  hearers  who  did  not 
hearken  to  his  words. 

Nothing  remains  to  us  of  these  celebrated  denunciations  of  heresy,  nor  of 
the  sermons  preached  in  favour  of  the  Crusades;  they  were  all  delivered 
extempore,  and  were  never  committed  to  writing.  But  we  have  a  somewhat 
large  number  of  those  belonging  to  the  theological  and  mystical  school,  and 
which  were,  therefore,  carefully  prepared  beforehand.  Here,  again,  we  have 
St.  Bernard,  surrounded  this  time  by  Hugues  and  Richard  de  St.  Victor, 
Abelard,  and  Maurice  de  Sully,  Bishop  of  Paris  (Fig.  400).  With  Abelard, 
notably  in  his  Latin  discourses  to  the  "  Virgins  of  the  Paraclete,"  we  have 
the  dialectician  always  ready  to  call  in  the  authority  of  philosophy  in  support 
of  the  authority  of  the  Church.     With  St.  Bernard,  upon  the  other  hand,  we 


CIVIL  AXD  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 


S3S 


can  always  hear  miittoring,  behind  the  long-dnnvu  sighs  of  asoefieism,  tlie 
internal  convulsions  of  the  human  soul.  Mctai^hysics,  psycholony,  a  profound 
sentiment  of  the  realities  of  earthly  life,  fiery  denunciations  of  the  indolence 


^ganctus  ^ommtcna. 


Fig.  399. — The  Glories  of  the  Order  of  St.  Dominic. — Fae-simile  of  a  Wood  Engraving  of  thf 
Fifteenth  Century,  from  the  "  Meditationes,"  by  Turrecremata  (Rome,  M.  Gallns,  1478,  in 
folio).— In  the  Library  of  M.  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 

of  the  monks,  and  theological  arguments,  all  are  to  be  found  in  the  magnificent 
sermons  of  St.  Bernard.  The  sermons  of  Ilugues  and  Richard  de  St.  Victor,  like 
those  of  Isaac,  Abbot  of  St.  Etoilc,  reflect  in  a  more  chaste  style  the  warm  aspira- 
tions of  the  piety  of  the  cloister  and  the  purest  ecstasies  of  a  contemplative  life. 


536   .  CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS   ORATORY. 

Sacred  oratory  liad  attained  its  apogee  in  the  sermons  of  the  twelfth 
century  (Fig.  401),  from  which  time  it  began  to  suffer  from  the  intrusion  of 
scholasticism,  of  the  formula,  and  of  vague  subtleties.  We  may  say  that 
it  already  had  begun  its  downward  progress  towards  the  decay  into  which 
it  fell  before  the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century.  Numerous  abuses,  too,  crept 
into  the  ecclesiastical  system.  Not  only  did  certain  simoniacal  clerks  make 
money  of  their  sermons,  but  mere  laymen  vied  with  them  in  making  a  trade 
of  preaching,  and  offered  to  take  the  place  of  the  priests  upon  payment  of  a 
certain  sum.  Associations  of  preachers,  having  no  religious  character,  were 
formed  for  the  purpose  of  farming,  so  to  speak,  a  parish,  or  even  a  diocese, 
undertaking  to  supply  as  many  preachers  as  might  be  Avanted.  The  Church 
would  not  countenance  so  scandalous  a  proceeding,  but  her  most  strenuous 
efforts  were  not  always  sufficient  to  prevent  these  acts  of  simony.  Many 
priests  and  curates  excused  themselves  for  having  allowed  them  upon  the 
ground  of  their  incapacity  to  preach  themselves.  Some  talented  preachers 
who  had  remained  true  to  their  mission,  then  conceived  the  idea  of  composing- 
manuals,  or  grades,  in  which  the  priests  could  obtain  the  materials  for  com- 
posing their  sermons.  The  most  esteemed  of  these  preachers'  manuals  were 
those  of  Humbert  de  Romans  and  Alain  of  Lille. 

While  this  decadence  of  pulpit  oratory  was  taking  place,  the  art  of 
speaking,  with  regard  to  politics,  jurisprudence,  and  scholastic  teaching,  had 
come  under  the  favourable  influences  of  the  intellectual  progress  which,  from 
the  twelfth  century,  was  universal  in  all  spheres  of  civil  society.  History 
has  not,  unfortunately,  preserved  any  written  record  of  the  efforts  of 
eloquence  which  accompanied  the  establishment  of  communes,  the  drawing 
up  of  charters  of  franchise,  or  the  reunion  of  local  and  general  assemblies,  at 
which  were  present  the  elected  representatives  of  the  nobility,  clergy,  and 
bourgeoisie ;  in  a  word,  all  the  struggles  of  an  incipient  liberty  against  the 
trammels  of  the  feudal  system.  The  oratory  of  the  bar  was  doubtless  still 
enveloped  in  the  fetters  of  scholasticism,  and  the  advocates  of  the  first 
Parliaments  are  only  known  to  us  through  the  severe  satires  of  which  they 
were  made  the  subjects.  An  eminent  theologian,  Pierre  Le  Chantre, 
reproaches  them  with  having  extorted  money  from  both  sides,  with  havmg 
betrayed  the  cause  of  the  widow  and  the  orphan,  with  having  employed  their 
talents  in  prolonging  and  multiplying  suits,  and  inventing  all  manner  oi 
cavils  to  obscure  the  truth  and  prevent  the  triumph   of   right.      Another 


CIVIL   AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATOR]'. 


537 


theologian  denounces  their  unbounded  avarice,  and  indignantly  declares  tlial 
by  their  venality  thej'  have  discredited  a  profession  once  so  glorious. 

St.  Louis  endeavoured  to  reform  the  abuses  of  the  bar ;  the  Jews,  heretics, 
and  excommunicated  persons  were  all  excluded ;  and  afterwards  men  of 
evil  lives,  and  those  who  had  been  sentenced  to  punishments  entailing  the 
stamp  of  infamy,  were  exj^olled.  The  King  himself  arranged  the  rules  as  to 
pleadings,  enjoining  the  advocates  to   expose  their   case  with    the    utmost 


Fig.  400.— Sacred  Oratory,  represented  by  a  Bisliop,  a  Doctor  of  Tlieology,  and  a  Clerk.— Tlie 
Supplicant  goes  upon  her  Knees  before  them.— After  a  Jliniature  from  the  "  Petite  Traicto  de 
la  Vanite  des  Choses  Mondaincs,"  composed  in  H66.--Manuscript  of  the  period  (No.  30,  Sc 
and  A). — In  the  Arsenal  Library,  Puris. 


possible  clearness  and  concision  ;  only  to  take  honourable  causes  ;  to  be 
moderate  and  courteous  towards  their  opponents,  using  no  insulting  language, 
not  distorting  the  text  of  the  decrees  and  customs,  or  making  use  of  any  false 
allegation!?,  the  whole  undci-  pain  of  being  deprived  of  the  title  of  advocate 
and  the  right  of  following  their  profession.  This  severe  discipline,  the 
tradition  of  which  has  been  in  part  perpetuated  to  the  present  day,  restored 


538    ■  CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 


a  portion  of  its  lustre  to  the  Frencli  bar,  amongst  the  members  of  wbicli,  at  this 
epocli,  may  be  cited  Pierre  de  Fontaines ;  Gui  Foulques,  or  Fouquet,  \t1io 
afterwards  entered  holy  orders  and  became  Pope  Clement  lY. ;  and  Yves  of 
Brittany,  whose  Christian  virtues  caused  him  to  be  placed  amongst  the 
number  of  saints,  and  whom  the  advocates  adopted  as  their  patron.  The 
study  of  jurisprudence  had  certainly  revived,  but  there  was  not  the  same 
re'S'ival  in  the  art  of  oratory ;  and  the  advocates,  upon  leaving  the  schools  in 
which  were  taught  dialectics,  logic,  and  philosophy,  lost  themselves  in  endless 
discussions  bristling  with  Latin  quotations,  and  utterly  devoid  of  method, 
simplicity,  and  true  eloquence. 

The  profession  had  nevertheless  acquired  great  importance,  owing  to  the 
reforms  introduced  by  St.  Louis  into  the  judicial  institutions.  The  bar  of  the 
fourteenth  century  can  boast  of  having  produced  Pierre  de  Cugnieres,  Amaud 
de  Corbie,  Eegnault  d'Acy,  and  others  who  exercised  an  influence  upon  public 
affairs  due  in  part  to  their  oratorical  talent.  Jean  de  Meheye,  for  instance, 
distinguished  himself  by  the  way  in  which  he  discharged  the  functions  of 
advocate-general  in  the  trial  of  Philippe  le  Bel's  unhappy  minister,  Enguer- 
rand  de  Marigny  (1315) ;  and  Francois  Bertrand,  selected  in  1329  to  defend 
the  ecclesiastical  jurisdictions  against  the  encroachments  of  the  nobilitj-, 
acquitted  himself  of  this  task  with  so  much  zeal  and  discretion  that  the  court 
of  Rome  rewarded  him  with  the  cardinal's  hat.  These  great  political  trials 
awoke  a  general  sentiment  of  curiosity.  The  imposing  spectacle  presented 
by  a  sitting  of  Parliament  under  such  circumstances  always  attracted  a 
numerous  attendance.  The  nobles  quitted  their  hunting  parties  at  home  to 
assist  at  the  pleadings  ;  but  the  ladies,  even  those  of  the  highest  rank,  scrupu- 
lously abstained  from  appearing  in  the  Parliament.  The  talent  of  the 
advocates  had  much  to  do  with  the  popularity  of  these  judicial  tournaments, 
and  a  well-known  formulary  of  the  coui-ts,  entitled  the  "  Style  of  the 
Parliament,"  enumerates  the  professional  qualities  of  a  good  advocate, 
which  were  as  follows  : — "  He  need  possess  a  noble  carriage,  have  an  open  and 
good-humoured  physiognomy,  not  affect  a  presumptuous  assurance,  demean 
himself  soberly  before  the  tribimal,  speak  ia  a  loud  and  clear  voice,"  and  so 
forth.  In  spite  of  this  good  advice,  many  advocates  justified  by  their  conduct 
the  bad  opinion  of  the  public  conveved  in  the  popular  proverb,  "  Much 
eloquence,  little  conscience." 

But  with  the  fifteenth  century  the  field  was  opened  to  every  species  of 


CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATURV. 


S39 


exaggeration  born  out  of  the  political  dissensions  which  occurred  during  the 
reign  of  Charles  VI.  The  preachers  became  the  principal  agents  of  the  two 
parties  in  presence  (Fig.  403),  known  as  the  Armagiiacs  and  the  Burcjundinns. 
In  1402,  one  of  these  preachers  named  Courtecuisse,  in  the  pay  of  the  Duke 


fig.  401.-Fleinish  Dont.ir  haranguing  the  People  in  the  open  Street  (Fifteenth  Century). 
Miniature  of  Manuscript  from  the  "  Chroniques  de  Hainaut."-In  the  Burgundy  Library, 
Brussels. 


of  Burgundy,  solemnly  declared  from  the  piilpit  that  the  King's  brother,  the 
Duke  of  Orleans,   was  the  partisan   and  supporter  of  the  schismatics.     In 


540  CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 

1405,  Jacques  Legrancl,  an  Augustine  monk,  preaching  before  Queen  Isabeau 
of  Bavaria,  esborted  lier  to  excliange  ber  sumptuous  attire  for  a  plain  dress, 
and  walk  tbrovigb  tbe  streets  of  Paris  to  bear  wbat  tbe  people  said  of  ber. 
In  anotber  sermon,  preacbed  before  tbe  court  at  tbe  Hotel  St.  Pol,  tbe  same 
preacber  boldly  reproacbed  Cbarles  YI.  with  having  caused  the  tears  and  tbe 
groans  of  the  people.  But  in  1408,  Jean  Sans-Peur,  Duke  of  Burgundy,  bad 
bis  enemy,  the  Duke  of  Orleans,  assassinated,  and  be  convoked  at  tbe  residence 
of  the  King,  who  was  insane,  a  numerous  congregation,  in  whose  presence  tbe 
Grey  Friar,  Jean  Petit,  pronounced  a  solemn  justification  of  the  murder  and  of 
the  murderer.  In  this  set  discou^rse,  which  was  indirectly  addressed  to  the 
whole  of  France,  Jean  Petit,  after  a  pompous  eulogy  of  tbe  Duke  of  Burgundy, 
bad  the  audacity  to  set  forth  his  reasons  for  taking  up  tbe  Duke  of  Burgundy's 
defence.  He  said,  "  Tbe  first  of  these  reasons  is  that  I  am  compelled  by  the 
oath  which  I  took  three  years  ago  to  serve  him.  The  second  is  that  he, 
seeiag  bow  poorly  I  was  paid,  has  given  me  a  large  pension  each  year,  to 
assist  me  in  keeping  up  mj^  schools,  from  which  pension  I  have  been  able 
to  defray  a  large  part  of  my  expenses,  and  shall  continue  to  do  so,  if  it  still 
please  bis  grace."  After  this  fulsome  exordium  the  orator  set  forth  tbe 
division  of  his  speech,  comprising  a  major,  in  four  parts,  to  prove :  1st,  that 
covetousness  is  tbe  mother  of  all  evils ;  2nd,  that  it  leads  to  aj)Ostasy ;  3rd, 
that  it  makes  subjects  disloyal  and  untrue  to  their  sovereign  ;  4tb,  that  it  is 
lawful  to  kill  apostates,  traitors,  and  disloyal  subjects.  This  fourth  point, 
composed  of  eight  principal  truths,  eight  corollaries,  and  twelve  syllogisms, 
formed  the  capital  object  of  tbe  discourse.  Jean  Petit  had  recourse  to  all 
the  quibbles  of  dialectics  to  justify  tbe  murderer  and  glorify  tbe  murder. 
He  invoked  the  examples  of  Lucifer,  Absalom,  and  Atbaliab  in  support  of 
bis  detestable  doctrines ;  be  showed,  finally,  that  the  Duke  of  Orleans  had 
fallen  into  tbe  sin  of  covetousness  by  trying  to  usurp  tbe  crown  ;  that  be 
was,  therefore,  an  apostate,  a  traitor,  a  disloyal  subject,  guilty  of  high  treason  ; 
and  that  tbe  man  who  had  killed  him  bad  done  what  was  praiseworthy  in 
the  sight  of  God  and  of  man. 

This  disgraceful  discourse  so  excited  public  curiosity  that  Jean  Petit  had 
to  pronounce  it  over  again  iipon  the  following  day  from  a  platform  erected 
uj)on  tbe  square  in  front  of  Notre-Danie,  in  presence  of  an  enormous  crowd. 
Nevertheless,  the  widow  of  tbe  murdered  man,  Valentine  of  Milan,  had 
obtained  permission  from  King  Cbarles  VI.  to  have  herself  and  ber  children 


CIVIL   AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 


541 


represented  by  an  advocate  of  the  courts  named  Jean  Cousinot,  who  replied 
with  dignity  to  the  apologist  of  assassination,  and  who  created  a  profound 
impression  upon  the  audience  when  he  appealed  upon  behalf  of  the  blood 
which  had  been  shed  to  the  justice  of  the  King  of  France.  This  great 
criminal  trial  was  destined  to  remain  pending  before  the  trilniual  of  public 
opinion  until  the  unjjunished  murderer  was  in  his  turn  assassinated,  fifteen 
years  later,  under  the  eyes  of  the  heir  to  the  throne.  This  catastrophe  did 
not  give  rise  to  any  oratorical  debate,  and  Jean  l*etit  had  no  imitator.    But  a 


Fig.  402.— Portiait  of  Jerome  Savon.irola.— Reduced  Fac-simile  of  the  Engraving  of  Leonardo  da 
Vinci  in  Vienna  Museum  (Alberline  Collection). 

few  years  later,  in  another  political  trial,  more  memorable  and  more  worthy 
of  notice,  a  new  kind  of  eloquence  was  suddenly  revealed  in  an  unlettered 
young  girl,  who  drew  her  inspiration  solely  from  her  conscience  and  her 
heart.  In  this  trial,  during  which  every  rule  of  justice  was  disregarded  or 
violated,  Joan  of  Arc,  taken  prisoner  by  the  English,  had  no  advocate  to 
assist  her,  and  all  her  defence  was  confined  to  her  rejjlics  to  the  interroga- 
tories of  her  accusers.    The  judges,  or  rather  the  toi-turers,  the  most  hardened 


S42  CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 

of  the  doctors  of  the  school,  were  more  than  once  touched  and  confounded  as 
they  listened  to  the  proud  and  simple  utterances  of  their  prisoner ;  and  Joan 
of  Arc,  cruelly  accused  of  imaginary  crimes,  returned  with  a  smile  upon  her 
face  to  her  prison,  saying  to  her  gaolers,  who  looked  upon  her  as  a  sorceress, 
"  Do  not  be  afraid  ;  I  shall  not  fly  away  ;  I  am  not  an  angel."  Her  replies, 
so  simple,  and  yet  so  telling,  often  sublime,  and  always  true,  are  not  the  least 
striking  eyidence  of  her  Divine  mission. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  art  of  oratory  seemed  to  authorise  the  most  extreme 
license  of  speech.  The  same  sjjeaker  could  venture,  without  fear  of  discredit, 
to  support  ia  turn  the  most  diametrically  oj)posed  doctrines.  So  willed  it  that 
sphinx  of  the  schools  called  Dialectics,  and  these  contradictory  statements 
did  not  strike  any  one  as  beuig  blamable.  Thus  all  speakers,  whether  of 
the  bar  or  of  the  pulpit,  were  considered  to  be  inviolable,  and  no  one  ever 
thought  of  calling  any  of  them  to  account  for  what  they  had  said.  Even 
Louis  XI.,  despot  as  he  was,  did  not  dare  to  interfere  with  the  utterances  of 
the  preachers.  The  latter  had  not  the  same  immunity  in  Italy  which  they 
enjoyed  in  France,  for  they  were  kept  under  control  not  only  by  the  eccle- 
siastical, but  by  the  civil  authorities.  Thus  Jerome  Savonarola  (Fig.  402), 
whose  original,  abundant,  and  indomitable  eloquence  had  led  him  to  attack 
the  greatest  and  most  powerful  of  human  institutions,  was  more  than  once 
compelled  to  quit  the  pulpit,  and  after  having  been  interdicted,  and  even 
excommunicated,  he  was_imprisoned  by  order  of  the  Seigniory  of  Florence, 
and  condemned  to  be  burnt  alive  aa  a  heretic  (May  23rd,  1498). 

The  oratory  of  the  bar  was  more  restrained  and  dignified.  In  truth,  the 
involved  and  sententious  prolixity  of  the  lawyers  did  not  deserve  the  name  of 
oratory,  and  their  pedantic  language,  bristling  with  subtleties  borrowed  from 
scholasticism,  was  not  calculated  to  move  or  to  carry  away  their  hearers.  We 
must,  however,  cite  a  few  pleaders  who,  like  Jacques  Marechal,  La  Vacquerie, 
and  Antoine  Duprat,  combined  with  the  science  of  the  jurisconsult  force,  and 
in  some  cases  elegance,  of  diction.  But  most  of  the  preachers,  who  affected 
a  sort  of  rough  and  tuicouth  eloquence  appealing  to  popular  intelligence, 
belonged  to  the  trivialist  school  which  Gabriele  Barletta  had  created  at 
Naples,  where  his  burlesque  sermons  had  an  extraordinary  success.  It  was 
after  this  jack-pudding  type  that  the  art  of  preaching  was  everywhere 
reduced  to  this  one  axiom  :  "  Nescit  predicare  qui  nescit  barlettare  "  ("  No  one 
knows  how  to  preach  if  he  cannot  imitate  Barletta  ").    Barletta's  example  was. 


CIVIL   AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATOKV 


543 


therefore,  followed,  and  even  outdone,  by  his  imitators,  ainonpst  whom  were 
Geyler  in  Germany,  and  Robert  Messier,  Guillaume  I'epin,  Michel  ]\Ienot, 
and  Olivier  Maillard  in  France.  These  preachers,  who  were  none  the  less 
pious  and  sincere,  went  to  the  greatest  lengths  in  their  sermons,  the  Latin 
context  of  which  was  intersjiersed  with  words  and  phrases  in  the  vulgar 
tongue,  into  which  they  foisted  pell-mell  proverbs,  songs,  jokes,  apologues, 
and  ill-timed  pleasantries.  But  their  audiences  were  not,  as  a  rule,  particular 
in  this  respect,  and  when  Olivier  Maillard  was  going  to  preach  at  his  parish 


Fig.  403.— Sermon  upon  the  Vanity  of  Human  Things.— The  Actor  (or  Author)  instructs  the 
Supplicant  opposite  the  .Shop  of  a  Goldsmith  and  Jloney-changer.— Fac-simile  of  a  Miniature 
from  the  "Petite  Traicte  do  la  Vanite  des  Choses  Mondaines,"  composed  in  1466.— 
Manuscript  of  the  Period.— In  the  Arsenal  Library,  Paris. 


of  St.  Jean-en-Greve  the  church  wa.s  crowded  by  daybreak.  Xo  preacher 
ever  produced  so  potent  an  effect.  At  first  his  hearers  laughed  at  his  satirical 
allusions,  but  they  were  in  the  end  subdued  and  stirred  by  his  eloquence, 
which  had  its  root  in  the  most  ardent  faith. 

Olivier  Maillard,  whose  sermons  preached  in  Paris  re-echoed  throughout 
France,   afterwards  travelled  through   the  provinces,  and   preached   in  the 


5+4 


CIVIL  AXD  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 


difEerent  patois.  At  Toulouse  lie  repeated  in  the  local  dialect  liis  "  General 
Confession,"  whicli  he  had  first  deKvered  in  Poiteyin  at  Poitiers;  and  at 
Bruges,  in  1502,  he  repeated  a  Savoy  bergeronette  ■which  he  had  delivered  from 
the  Toulouse  pulpit  at  "Whitsuntide.  Michel  Menot  was  not  so  poetic  as 
Maillard,  but  he  denounced  the  vices  and  follies  of  all  classes  of  society.  At 
Tours,  preaching  in  a  medley  of  Latin  and  French,  he  exclaimed,  "  Oh,  citj- 
of  Tours,  pride  dishonours  thy  daughters  I  The  wife  of  a  shoemaker  wears  a 
tunic  like  that  of  a  duchess.  People  who  have  twenty  pounds  a  year  keep 
horses  and  dogs ;  those  who  have  fifty  are  friends  with  the  nobles,  and  keep 
their  town  and  country  house."  Then,  addressing  himself  to  the  ladies  who 
always  came  in  late  to  church,  "It  is  now  nine  o'clock  (a.m.),  and  you  are 


Fig.  404. — Portrait  of  Claude  Despence.         Fig.  405. — Portrait  of  the  Cardinal  de  Lorraine. 

Fac  simile  of  Line  Engravings  by  L&nard  Gaultier,  in  the  Series  called  "  Clironologie  collee." 
In  the  Library  of  M.  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


still  in  bed.  Forty  horses  might  have  been  bedded  up  while  all  your  pins 
were  being  put  in  their  places.  When  you  are  at  your  toilette  you  resemble 
the  cobbler  who  requires  a  lot  of  pieces  to  put  his  work  together.  And  if, 
while  the  priest  is  elevating  the  Host  above  the  altar,  some  young  dandy 
presents  himself  at  her  seat,  Madame,  in  compliance  with  the  customs  of  the 
nobility,  must  rise  and  offer  him  her  hand !  Let  such  privileges  be  put  down 
without  form  or  ceremony"  (Fig.  403). 

The  fiery  Luther,  for  all  his  double  merits  as  a  theologian  and  a  man  of 
letters,  belonged,  as  an  eloquent  preacher,  to  the  popular  school,  and  he 
himself  said,  "I  preach  as  simply  as  possible,  so  as  to  be  imderstood  by  the 
common  people,  by  the  children,  and  by  the  servants.  I  do  not  preach  for  the 
learned ;  thev  have  their  books."     The  most  powerful  agency  of  the  Eefonna- 


CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORV. 


5+S 


tiou  was,  in  fact,  pmichofl  and  hrouj^'lit  williiii  llir  (■(,iii|iivlii.iisi,,n  ui  \\w. 
people.  Calvin,  Tli('(j(l,n'u  do  Itrze,  and  (ho  loaders  ol'  I'rnii'slniilisin  at 
Geneva  were   also    indofati.o-ablo  proachors,   l)iit    tliov  did  not   do  nioio  lliaii 


Fig.  406.— Portrait  of  Sixtus  (iuintiis  (1.021— lu90).— Reduced  Fae-siniile  of  a  contemponiry 
Etehing,  liy  an  unknown  Italian  Artist. 


paraphrase,  and  that  rather  drily,  the  text  of  the  Gospel ;  and,  taking  as  a 
principle  that  the  Word  of  God  had  no  need  of  profane  ornamentation,  they 
did  not   seek   to    move    men's  liearts,  or  appeal   lu   their  imaginations.      Tlie 


4    A 


5+6 


CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 


Catholic  preachers  who  rose  in  all  directions  to  defend  the  Church  against  the 
efforts  of  the  Protestants  were,  for  the  most  part,  unequal  to  their  mission,  for 
a  few  only,  such  as  Claude  Despence  and  the  Cardinal  de  Lorraine  (Figs. 
404  and  405),  distinguished  themselves  by  real  oratorical  talent.  Many  others, 
such  as  Vigor  and  Seneschal,  were  only  remarkable  for  the  violence  and 
hastiness  of  their  rejoinders.  It  may  be  said  that  by  the  end  of  the  sixteenth 
century  true  religious  eloquence  had  disappeared,  and  then  were  renewed  in 
France  the  pulpit  scandals  of  the  epoch  of  the  Burgundians  and  the 
Armagnacs.  The  preachers  of  the  League,  who  claimed  to  be  inspired  and 
authorised  bj^  Pope  Sixtus  Quintus  (Fig.  406),  went  to  excesses  which  not 
even  the  disorders  of  that  time  could  excuse. 

But  we  may  turn  from  this  unedifying  spectacle  to  consider  what  was  the 


■"^* 


Fig.  407.— Portrait  of 
B.  Dumesnil. 


fie-.  408.— Portrait  of  Pibrac. 


Pig.  409.— Portrait  of 
J.  Faye. 


Fac-simile  of  Line  Engravings  by  Leonard  Gaullier,  from  the  Series  known  as  "  Chronologie 
collee." — In  the  L  brary  of  M.  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


condition  of  civil  oratory  during  this  troubled  period.  The  bar,  as  it  shook 
off  the  yoke  of  scholasticism,  had  gradually  undergone  a  complete  literary 
transfonnation.  The  classic  renaissance  of  the  sixteenth  century  naturally 
made  its  influence  first  felt  in  the  courts,  but  unfortvmately  the  advocates 
were  addicted  to  prolix  discourses,  and  to  an  unstinting  use  of  the  flowers  of 
rhetoric.  From  the  year  1550  the  reopening  of  the  sessions  of  the  Parliament, 
after  its  annual  vacations,  was  made  the  occasion  for  harangues  carefully 
prepared.  In  1557  Baptiste  Dumesnil  delivered  an  oration  upon  Asconius 
Pedianus,  while  in  the  following  year  Guy  du  Faur  de  Pibrac  spoke,  being  suc- 
ceeded by  Jacques  Faye  (Figs.  407  to  409),  and  the  illustrious  Jacques- Auguste 


CIVIL  AND  RELiaiOUS  URATORy 


5+7 


de  Thou.  In  l-">80  Jacquow  Maiigot  spoke  "  for  tlireo  i',(jiiseculivi!  Iiom-N,  uiid 
was  as  fresh  at  the  finish  as  at  the  beginning  of  his  discourse,"  says  Estiennc 
Pasquier.  These  harangues  were  printed,  and  they  were  consi(k:ie(l  "  more 
agreeable  to  read"  than  )o  listen  to.  Advocates  and  )na<'istra(es  alike 
distinguished  themselves,  and  the  names  of  8eguier,  Dummdin,  the  first  of 
the  Lamoiguons,  Lemaiti-e,  Cujas,  Chopin,  Brisson,  and  I'ithou  (Figs.  410  to 
414),  shed  a  lustre  upon  the  history  both  of  the  Parliament  and  the  bar.  If 
their  discourses  are  not  literary  and  oratorical  masterpieces,  the\'  are  at  all 
events,  as  regards  logical  argument,  sentiment,  and  sinceritj',  wortliy  of  all 
praise.  There  is  instinct  in  them,  at  all  times,  a  consistent  tradition  of  honour 
and  virtue,  from  Jean  de  la  Vacquerie,  First  President  of  the  I'aris  Parliament, 
boldly  replying  to  the  threats  of  Louis  XI.,  "  Sire,  we  come  to  remit  our 


T^^ 


Fig.  410.— Portrait  of  I'ig.  411. — Portrait  of  C.  Dumoulin. 

P.  Seguier. 


Fig.  412.- Portrait  of 
G.  Lemaitre. 


Fac-aimile  of  Line  Engravings  by  Leonard  Gaultier,  from  the  Series  called  "  Chronologie 
collee." — In  the  Library  of  M.  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


functions  into  your  hands,  and  to  suffer  what  it  may  be  your  good  pleasure  to 
inflict  upon  us,  rather  than  offend  our  consciences,"  to  the  Chancellor  Oliviei' 
enjoining  the  members  of  the  Normandy  Parliament  (Oct.  8th,  1550),  as  he 
showed  them  the  crucifix,  to  "  remembei-,  as  you  fuMl  your  charges,  that  He 
to  whom  all  liearts  are  oi^en  is  in  your  midst ;  He  to  whom  you  will  have  to 
render  an  account  of  your  judgments,  and  whose  sentence  is  inevitable,  even 
if  you  escape  the  hand  of  the  King  and  of  justice." 

Parliamentary  eloquence  became  in  a  degree  political  when  the  great 
magisterial  bodies  addressed  themselves  to  the  sovereign,  who  generally 
listened  to  them  with  deference.     But  political  eloquence  had  freer  course  in 


5+8 


CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 


the  grave  circumstances  wHch  led  to  the  convocation  of  the  States-General, 
when  the  deputies  of  the  orders  which  represented  the  nation  deliherated  with 
closed  doors  as  to  the  wording  of  the  Cahiers,  in  which  they  expressed  the 
resolutions  which  were  afterwards  submitted  to  the  King  in  the  shape  of 
2)l(iints,  doUances,  and  remonstrances.  These  deliberations  often  gave  rise  to 
harangues  in  Latin  or  French,  which  enabled  the  sjjeaker  to  indulge  in  very 
high-flown  eloquence.  It  was  thus  that,  at  the  States-General  of  Tours  in  1484, 
one  of  the  representatives  of  the  Burgundy  nobility,  Philippe  Pot,  Seigneur  of 
La  Roche,  pronounced  a  Latin  speech,  in  which  he  enunciated  with  great 
boldness  and  logic  political  doctrines  which  were  not  understood  until  two 
centuries  afterwards.  "  Roj'^alty,"  he  said,  "  is  a  duty,  and  not  an  hereditary 
privilege,  and  it  should  not  alwaj^s  pass,  like  propertj%  to  the  nearest  relatives. 


^^?^^j 


Fig.  413.— rorirail  of 
J.  Cujas. 


Fig.  414.— Portrait  of  V.  Pithou. 


Fig.  415.— Portrait  of 
M.  de  I'Hospital. 


Fac-simile  of  Line  Engravings  by  Leonard  GauTtier,  from  the  Series  called  "  Chronologic 
coUee." — In  the  Library  of  M.  Firrain-Didot,  Paris. 


The  State,  deprived  of  a  chief,  will,  it  maj'  be  objected,  remain  exposed  to 
accident  and  disorder.  Not  at  all,  for  its  safety  may  be  left  in  the  hands  of 
the  Assembl}^  of  the  three  orders,  not  to  govern  it  themselves,  but  to  select 
persons  capable  of  governing.  Originally  the  suffrage  of  the  people,  who 
were  the  masters,  created  kings,  and  the  people  selected  the  most  virtuoiis 
and  the  most  able.  Each  nation,  in  selecting  a  king,  acted  in  its  oivn  interest 
and  for  its  own  advantage  ;  for  princes  are  made  princes  not  to  prey  upon  the 
people,  but  to  make  them  richer  and  improve  their  condition.  The  kings  who 
fail  to  do  so  are  tyrants  and  bad  shepherds,  because  they  devour  their  sheep  ; 
thus  they  are  wolves,  and  not  shepherds." 


CIVIL   AXn  RELIGIOUS  URATORV. 


549 


At  the  Orleans  States-General,  in  15(J0,  the  (Jhiinfellor  of  France,  Michel 
de  rilospital  (Fig.  415)  opened  the  first  sitting  with  a  vcr}'  powerful  speech, 
in  which  he  declared,  as  Philippe  Pot  had  done,  that  institutions  such  as  the 
States-General  were  very  useful  to  the  monarchy,  and  that  the  Kings  of 
France  could  not  do  hettcr,  in  certain  circumstances,  than  consult  their 
subjects.  After  eiumerating  all  the  ills  which  desolated  the  kingdom,  torn 
as  it  was  by  civil  and  religious  wars,  he  advised  the  Crown  to  combat  this 
social  anarchy  bj' wise  tolerance  and  well-conceived  reforms.  "We  have," 
he  declared,  "been    like    the  captains  who  assailed    their  enemies  with    all 


Fig.  416.— Portrait  of  Hoiiri  III.— lieduced   Fac-simile  of  an  Eugiaving  by  tidultier.— In  the 
Library  of  M.  Firmin-DiJot,  Paris. 


their  forces,  leaving  thus  our  homes  unprotected.  It  is  for  us,  fortified 
with  virtue  and  morality,  to  assail  the  enemy  with  the  arms  of  chanty, 
prayer,  persuasion,  and  God's  Word."  These  words  were  uttered  nine  years 
before  the  massacre  of  St.  Ikirtholomew.  Later  the  kings  presided  in  person 
at  the  opening  of  the  States-General,  and  delivered  a  speech.  These  speeches 
have  been  preserved,  and,  amongst  others,  those  of  Henri  III.  (Fig.  416) 
to  the  States-General  of  Blois  in  1576  and  1.588.  Mezeray  relates  that 
Henri  III.,  who  .spoke  well,  was  very  fond  of  delivering  these  speeches,  and 


55° 


CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 


also  that  his  unpremeditated  replies  to  the  ambassadors  and  deputies  whom 
he  received  were  much  better  than  their  set  speeches. 

Henri  lY.  did  not  convoke  the  States-General  duriuff  his  reign,  but  he 
found  other  opportunities  for  showing  that  he  could  speak  as  readily  and 
with  greater  sincerity  than  his  predecessor  in  public  assemblies.  Pie 
possessed  the  true  kind  of  political  eloquence,  inasmuch  as  he  was  able  to 
persuade  and  stir  his  hearers  in  a  few  words.  Take,  for  instance,  his  brief 
unstudied  speech  at  a  meeting  of  the  Notables  of  Rouen  (1596)  :  "  I  have 
not  called  you  together,  as  my  predecessors  did,  for  you  to  ratify  my  will, 


Fig.  417. — "  How  Gergeau  was  taken." — Miniature  from  the  "  Vigilea  du  Eoi  Charles  VII.' 
French  Manuscript  of  1484  (No.  5,054).— In  the  National  Library,  Paris. 


but  to  receive  your  advice,  to  put  confidence  in  it  and  to  follow  it,  and  to 
place  myself  in  your  hands — a  thing  which  is  not  often  done  by  kings, 
grey-headed  men,  or  victorious  soldiers." 

Henri  IV.  also  excelled  in  military  eloquence.  In  the  early  ages  of  the 
monarchy  it  was  not  the  generals  who  stimulated  the  enthusiasm  of  their 
soldiers,  but  the  soldiers  who  stimulated  their  own  enthusiasm  by  warlike 
songs  or  cries,  in  which  were  embodied  the  names  of  their  respective  chiefs. 
History,  however,  has  euregistered  the  speech  delivered  to  his  army  by 
Philip  Augustus,  before  the  battle  of  Bovines  (August  27th,  1214),  and  there 


CIVIL  AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATOR]'.  551 


is  reason  for  bclie\iiin-  iliiil  this  speech,  as  rec'()V(l('(]  Ijy  llir  clii-diiiclei's,  is 
quite  authentic.  It  forms  a  singuhir  mixture  of  energy,  siniplicil y,  and  confi- 
dence, which  is  much  to  he  admired  when  we  I'emember  wliat  a  coah'tion  of 
foreign  princes  had  been  formed  to  overthrow  the  French  Kinji^.  I'liih'p 
Augustus  said,  "  Eehold  Otho  the  excomnnmicated  and  his  adlicrcnis.  Tlic 
money  with  which  the}^  have  equipped  themselves  was  stolen  from  the 
poor  and  from  the  churches.  We  fight  for  our  God,  our  liberty,  and  our 
honour.  Sinners  as  we  are,  let  us  have  confidence  in  the  Lord,  and  we  sliall 
vanquish  our  enemies."  And  when  some  of  the  soldiers  murmured  against 
having  to  fight  on  a  Sunday,  the  King  added,  "  The  ^tlaccabfcus  family,  dear 
to  the  Lord,  did  not  hesitate  to  affront  the  enemy,  and  the  Lord  blessed  their 
arms."  The  captains  and  generals,  carried  away  by  their  enthusiasm, 
exclaimed,  "And  you,  the  elect  of  God,  bless  our  arms  I  "  The  army,  falling 
upon  its  knees,  repeated  the  crj-. 

Two  centuries  later,  the  example  of  military  eloquence  was  set,  not  by  a 
King  of  France,  but  bj-  a  plain  jjcas^nt  girl,  and  Joan  of  Arc's  simple 
language  exei'cised  even  greater  influence  over  those  who  hoard  her.  When 
Charles  TIL  ordered  the  Due  d'Alenoon  to  accompany  Joan  of  Arc  to  the 
siege  of  Jargeau,  which  was  held  by  the  English,  the  latter,  addressing 
the  Duke,  exclaimed,  "  Forward,  gentle  duke,  to  the  assault !  The  hour  is 
at  hand  when  God  wills.  He  bids  us  press  forward,  and  He  will  aid  us. 
....  Art  thou  afraid,  gentle  duke  ?  You  know  that  I  j^romised  your  wife  to 
bring  you  back  safe  and  sound."  The  assault  once  begun,  she  mounted  upon 
a  ladder,  from  which  she  was  thrown  to  the  ground  by  a  large  stone,  and  the 
French  thought  she  had  been  killed.  I!ut  she  ro.se  to  her  feet,  and,  waving 
her  banner,  cried,  "  Forward,  friends  !  Our  Lord  has  condemned  the  English  ; 
we  have  them  in  our  power."    And  the  town  was  taken  by  assault  (Fig.  417). 

It  was  not  for  another  century  and  a  half  that  such  elocpient  accents  were 
heard  from  the  mouth  of  a  sovereign.  Henri  lY.  had  accepted  the  challenge 
of  battle  offered  him  by  the  Due  de  Mayenne  in  the  plains  of  Ivry,  upon  the 
banks  of  the  Eure  (August  14th,  1590).  When  about  to  have  the  charge 
sounded,  he  addressed  his  sdldiers  as  follows: — "  My  companions,  you  are 
Frenchmen.  If  you  lose  your  colours,  do  not  lose  sight  of  my  jilumes ;  you 
will  find  tJiat  tliey  are  always  in  the  path  of  honour."  During  this  memo- 
rable comliat  it  was  ruui(jui(<l  (Iiat  (lie  King  had  been  wounded,  and  the  army 
began  to  give  way.      Henri   galloped   up  to  fhem.  and   shouted   in  loud  tones, 


552 


CIVIL   AND  RELIGIOUS  ORATORY. 


"  Look  at  me  ;  I  am  full  of  life  ;  be  you  full  of  honour  !  "  And,  when  victory 
had  declared  itself  in  his  favour,  he  passed  along  the  ranks  of  his  troops,  who 
were  massacring  the  fugitives,  and  said  to  them  in  beseeching  tones,  "  My 
children,  spare  the  French !  "  This  generous  utterance  shows  that  military 
oratory  needs  but  a  few  words  to  make  its  influence  felt.  Henri  IV.  was  at 
once  the  most  eloquent  of  warriors  and  of  statesmen. 


Fig  \  18. — Fragment  of  a  Binding  of  G.  Durand's  "  Rationale." — Manusciipt  of  the  Fourteenth 
Centuiy. — In  the  Library  of  M.  Firmin-Didot,  Paris. 


THE    END. 


PBIMKC    Bl    MJRTUK  AKOJ    lO.,  LIMITED,  CUV   KUAU,  LOSUOK. 


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